Lost Relics
by Lense
Summary: Prelude to a family redemption story.
1. Chapter 1

Legal Disclaimer; Star Trek: The Next Generation and character(s) Lore are © of Gene Roddenberry.

Chapter 1

The heat was exhausted from Lore's body in a matter of moments as he rematerialized in silent, icy space. It took him a few seconds to discern what had happened but once he acknowledged his surroundings, anger shrouded him even more forcefully than it had before. His _dear_ brother, how he hated him. He swore that if he _ever_ found him again, Lore would make him suffer for his betrayal. But his anger was soon replaced with panic at the recognition of his situation. His systems would not support him in the cold environment for very much longer. He begged and pleaded with some unknown deity that someone, _anyone_, would find him once again. He gazed at the distant sun, which shined into his eyes with a blazing intensity. Lore's functions began to give out one at a time until his thoughts slowed to a trickle and his body went numb.

.

* * *

><p><em>God<em>, how he always hated standing in line at the Federation clearance offices. More often than not, this is where you would find the most optimistic colonists or scientists who only pretended to know anything about their subject of study. The saints of their trade, any denial was only further evidence of their virtue. Lore found it sickening. In fact, the only scientist he had ever really believed to be a genius, was his father.

Dr. Noonian Soong was a man of pure inspiration. It was an eerie, paradoxical thought… to build something, out of metal and scrap, something that was _alive_… and now Lore was here to ponder his ideas, proof that Dr. Soong's work was a success. It was borderline tragic. His mother _and_ his father both believed him evil, bent on destroying anything good in the universe, simply out of jealousy and hatred…. They tried for him and now they were gone, perished in the Crystalline Entity's obliteration of the biological life on Omicron Theta and now Lore was left alone, save his emotionless brother.

Data meant next to nothing to him. How could Lore care for him? He despised him. Data left him in the void of space to drift until the universe collapsed in on itself. It was not until about a year ago he had reawakened to find himself lying on a table in a spartan medical bay.

"_He is very complex." Lore opened his eyes and sat up, hastily observed his surroundings._

"_He is awake!" The shock was evident on the faces of the aliens surrounding him. They stepped back apprehensively. "What is your name?"_

_He did not answer immediately, still suspicious of his surroundings. "…Lore."_

"_He is smart." The one whom had spoken first commented on Lore's manner. He snapped at them, his confusion beginning to frustrate him._

"_Who are you? And what species are you?"_

"_We are Pakled. My name is Gommal. We found you out there…" He pointed to a window in the medical bay._

"_What is the current star date?" Lore rubbed his head a little, stepping off the medical table. "Nevermind…" _43789.8_ His internal clock kicked in and gave him an estimate of how long he had been in space. _Two years… _Rage enveloped him and he had to fight not to show it._

"_You! You are smart. We need your help." Gommal spoke to him with the idiot use of the English language. It irritated Lore to no end._

"_Of course." He smiled greasily._

"Next, please." Lore glared at the graying man in attendance of the station from behind the protective force field. _Watch yourself, _he nearly growled_._ He really was not in the mood to shoot up any Starfleet clearance offices so close to a major Federation colony. Maybe on a better day but today he was not feeling so enthusiastic about the idea. The Pakled ship proved to be exceptionally easy to conquer and he claimed it as his own after a few modifications.

As he exited the building, a young man with dark hair and a soft expression collided with his shoulder. Lore instinctively reached out to steady the boy before he could lose his balance and fall. His reaction confused him. Why should Lore care if the child fell and hurt himself? Just for a moment, the young man reminded him of Wesley Crusher: young, perceptive… idiotic. The boy turned and smiled, muttering a small 'thank you'. Ignoring him, Lore stalked off on his way.

.

That evening, he found himself in a nightclub with excessively loud music and girls wearing clothing of scant proportions. The music occupied him, its volume numbing his mind and his body to the point where, at times, he could not recognize himself. He shook his head and remembered the reason he had wandered down into to these slums in the first place. He needed to find someone he could buy dilithium crystals from, without being put on the Federation's radar.

The Federation had recently been enforcing their policies regarding illegal dilithium markets with a new vengeance; finding anyone who was willing to deal in these matters could prove to be difficult. "There's a man named Jon Black who might be able to help you." Lore turned his head towards the younger man sitting at the table next to him who had whispered in a scratchy undertone. He had pleated ears and a nasty looking tattoo that ran down his face. "I used to deal with him."

"Where?" Lore tried to keep his questions short and simple, to avoid suspicion.

"Olympus City. Here on Veda II, you see? He runs Bakers."

"Bakers?"

"It's a club. Or... an organization... Whatever you will call it." He sipped his drink, absentmindedly.

"What's your name?" The man laughed at Lore's words but then began coughing into his sleeve. Still laughing, he finished his drink and left Lore sitting by himself.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

As it turned out Jon Black ran a large club which fibered out through the city of Olympus and basically ran all of the underground operations. He dealt in drug trade, weapons trade, transportation, dilithium trade. If it was illegal, Bakers was involved in some way or another.

Lore glanced at the address scribbled on his palm. He looked up and knew he had come to the right place. The exterior of what looked like an abandoned warehouse and yet he could hear the sounds of bass from the music pumping through the ground under his feet. Without hesitation, he breezed past a large group standing outside the main entrance.

John Black was a man of about thirty-four years of age and had prematurely graying hair, which silvered his brown hair. His black eyes glittered with excitement at the concept of a new business partner. After patiently listening to Lore's story, while throwing down a couple of shots from a bottle of blue Romulan Ale, Black finally divulged an idea which had been spinning around in his mind for a few months.

"Lore… listen," He wrapped his arm around Lore's stiff shoulder, the alcohol permeating from his breath. "I have a little assignment for you, if you are up to it."

_Assignment?_ "What's in it for me?" Lore knew better than to simply trust any thug off the street.

Black threw his head back and laughter shook his chest. "You're my kind of scrap, kid." He paused, as if he were in thought. "How does… a lifetime supply of dilithium sound?" Lore raised his eyebrow skeptically. "There is a planet, which we believe may contain large quantities of dilithium. We would just have to stake our claim first."

"Where?"

"Gamma-ZX330. The system is rumored to be inhabited by a race of humanoids." Black had to raise his voice a little over the sound of the music.

"Do they have warp capability?"

"No one is sure. If they do they use it rarely," Black's expression was sobering into a more serious front. "I've heard that the Federation sent a scout ship into the area for scientific research. They found the planet and returned. Prime Directive, you know? But here's the thing…. The planet is in the Gamma Quadrant."

He glanced at him sharply. "The Gamma Quadrant? What, you mean wormhole travel?"

"Exactly. Which is why I am asking you. You seem like the kind of scum that lives for that kind of space-exploration." The word 'exploration' resonated in his mind.

"How can you trust me?" Lore asked suspiciously. "How can _I_ trust _you_?"

"You can't. That's the glory in it!" He threw his head back and laughed again, thoroughly enjoying Lore's apparent uncertainty. Lore got the feeling Black could see right through his façade and that he knew just how naïve he really was about many aspects of the universe. Black drifted over to a distressed-looking young woman, wrapping his arm around her and whispering something in her ear. He looked up at Lore once more and nodded. Taking the hint, Lore crossed the bar and used the back door to exit the building.

Outside, the cigarette smoke from a couple of tormented looking teenagers mixed with the smog of the city and filled the night air with a stiflingly thick atmosphere. The kids stood under a flickering orange street light which gave off a dull buzzing noise. One of the girls had on far too much makeup and it looked as though none of them had ever slept in their lives. _"My kind of scrap..."_ Lore mused sardonically. The bass pumped from inside the building, leaving ripples in a small puddle on the asphalt. It was the middle of summer on Olympus and the night seemed to linger in a still calm, as though it were a monstrous animal that lye in a deep slumber, Lore's mind reeled… _no… playing dead_.

"Hey!" He ignored the boy whom had interjected his thoughts.

"Hey, he's talking to you!" The girl with the over-done makeup spoke in his favor. Lore turned his neck a tiny increment in their direction, showing them that they had only a minimal portion of his attention.

"What did Black want?"

"That's hardly any of your concern, _Sonny_." Lore sneered.

"Hey listen asshole, if you're here looking for a lay, I don't want you-"

"I'm not here for your little _whore_." He directed his statement at the eye-makeup girl standing next him. She shifted on her feet uncertainly.

"Go home." He spoke to her and only to her. The blonde girl took off down the alleyway, as though her life depended on it.

"Man, what the fuck-" The kid shouted but silenced as Lore advanced on him. In fear of Lore's darkening expression, he pulled out a phaser. The other woman, who looked much older than the others, probably in her mid-twenties, stalked back inside, her vibrant red hair bouncing behind her.

"Put it away," Lore asked him his expression darkening, almost begging for a reason to hurt him. The boy followed his friends inside the building, shoving his phaser back into his pants.

Lore breathed a sigh of relief at his newfound solitude. Looking up at the sky in curiosity, he observed that there were no stars; one could not see past the pink haze given off by the light-pollution of the planet. His brother crossed his mind… _Data_. He found himself wondering where his brother might be and wishing he could look at the stars now. Three and a half years had passed since he had any contact with Data. It had been almost a year since he last checked up on his activity in Starfleet. After attempting to hand the Enterprise over to the Crystalline Entity, their lack of contact did not surprise him.

Lore began to calm down again as the minutes slipped by. The red-headed female returned, peeking around the heavy, rusting metal door. "Hey, Bond! Jon wants to see you." Lore perked up. He unfolded his legs from his position leaning against the metal light-post and sauntered over to the door being held open for him.

"Do _not_ call me by your nicknames." He tried to sound firm and intimidating.

"I would call you by your real name, but you haven't told me what it is yet." She looked up at him, lips pouting.

"Lore."

"Natalia." She had a firm hand shake, confident despite the horrible things that could happen to a woman in her environment. "You can call me Natalie… Jon!" She called to him from across the small room, which extended into the apartments next door.

"Natalie, I see you found my new friend, why am I not surprised?" She stepped forward to take a seat on the faded couch, accidentally brushing her hand across the small of Lore's back and giving him a wicked smirk over her shoulder.

"Lore, this is my niece, Natalia," Black glanced up at him with a knowing stare. "You see, in addition to supplying you with dilithium, there are… other benefits... to becoming my business partner." He smiled what Lore believed to be the greasiest smile he had ever seen. Lore resisted the urge to press his palm against his face. What did he care if Black wanted to throw a little extra sugar into the deal. Who knows, it could be fun.

"Sir, you have yourself a deal."

"Excellent!" Black boomed while Natalie gave a rather seductive smile.

Once Black began to reveal the details of the expedition to Lore, it became clear how dangerous this mission could be. Stable wormholes were very rare in this sector and if any factors in the wormhole changed, then Lore could end up stranded anywhere in the Galaxy. He resolved to make the Bajoran wormhole his first shot.

.

After a few days, as he was preparing to leave Olympus, Natalie stopped by his apartment. He invited her inside and she looked around, warily, as though afraid someone would jump her inside his house.

"So," she leaned against his couch, hand resting on its edge. "I heard you're leaving soon."

He smiled. "You can celebrate now." She did not reply immediately; but rather bit her lip uncertainly.

"I want to come." The smile slid from his face. His small studio apartment reeked of cigarettes, weed and whatever else the characters that stayed with him smoked up the previous night.

"Natalie, this could be dangerous."

"And you care whether or not I get hurt." She raised her eyebrow skeptically. The answer 'no' flashed through his mind.

"Of course I do," He remarked with sickly sweetness. He took her face in hand, kissing her lips gently. He chuckled and brushed her aside; it was just one huge joke to him. She, however, was not amused.

"I want to come." Her face was determined.

"If anything goes wrong, you will be stuck in a tiny ship with me for… 60 years." He smirked.

"Sounds fun." He sighed a little. He had no desire to mix up his agreement with Black.

"Listen, I need to visit earth when I get back, I'll take you with me then, but for now you should stay here. Who knows? Perhaps I'll be back just in time for your Christmas."

"Promises."

"It'll be fun, god knows I haven't had fun in a while." He smiled. She crossed the short distance between them, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"I could get used to having something as fun as you around." She murmured, almost to herself. _Something?_

She chuckled lightly into his shoulder. For some reason the pleasant sound bothered him; it was as though he had been tossed a repulsive and tasteless item. He departed the next morning without saying goodbye.

* * *

><p>Lore let the passage of stars ease his heavy thoughts. It had been a long while since he had reached so deep out into space. As he was caught up in his thoughts, Natalie crossed his mind again. The woman… he doubted himself in her presence; she made him feel inferior, like a tool to be used by its human possessor. He hated the feeling, it made him sick; but yet he like being around her. That feeling was something like masochism. In fact, he felt himself craving the next time he would see her. He knew it was unhealthy, but he did not care. He would return to her, he was sure of that.<p>

Lore struggled to pull his thoughts away from Natalie as he came within transport range of the Bajoran outpost. "Bajoran outpost, this is a vessel from the Federation, serial number 3335-4990-8341-5595. Requesting permission to transport…"

The station remained silent. He repeated his message.

"Transport Vessel 5595, … permission … clear the wormhole. … reemerge in exactly 12 minutes." The message had an obscene amount of static and Lore found it difficult to make out. But after a few minutes, his sensors went off the chart. The next instant, the wormhole became visible as an inky black void in which he could not see the stars beyond. Instead, the pinpricks from the stars behind the disturbance bent around its exterior and created a blue halo of light circling its rim. Lore marveled at its beauty and set his ship on course. _A first time for everything…_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"_Entering system Gamma- ZX330."_ The computer's lifeless voice echoed through the cabin of his small Pakled ship. It had not taken much effort to break through and reprogram the Pakled computer's patchwork of diverse coding styles. In fact, he found it an engaging activity as it gave him new knowledge and skills in dealing with alien computer coding.

"Computer, what planet is this we're approaching?"

"_Gamma-ZX330-B. There are four planets in this system, two of which can maintain life; one is inhabited by a humanoid race."_ Lore put on the main view screen and the sight that met his eyes stole the breath from his chest. A planet, with vast blue oceans, was cast into the red glow of the sun. Lore decided to put his ship in orbit so that he could take a few readings to add to the small amount of data that he did have on the planet.

After a few hours in orbit, a sharp alert sounded from the navigation control. He was being pulled too close to the massive planet. He looked out through the view screen and it felt as if he were gazing out over a large, blue desert; the curvature of the surface was notably decreasing. He assumed it was due to a natural disturbance in gravity; there were serious gravimetric irregularities near the poles of the planet which could bring lesser ships to their demise. He adjusted the controls on the navigation panel to compensate.

"_Warning. Hull temperature exceeding design limits. Failure to regulate planetary orbit will result in system-wide malfunction."_

To Lore's dismay, several large ships decloaked on the port side of his ship. He took several readings of the specifications of their ships. He was far outgunned; their ships were superior in every way. The small Pakled ship he had adopted was not built for open combat… it was built for stealth. He was not expecting an envoy to meet him in his journey and was unprepared. Their tractor beam caught on to his ship and pulled him in. A docking station also appeared as he was pulled alongside the small fleet of ships. A small level of panic gripped him when he realized he might not be able to break the hold on his ship. He would need to formulate a plan to escape if he came into direct contact with this race. He began programming his ship to intercept and translate all subspace messages emanating from the ships and the planet. Their language was similar to most humanoid languages and, with the exception of the script, strongly reminded him of Vulcan.

As his ship was pulled into a docking spot, Lore began trying to break into the clearance systems of the station. Unsuccessful, he decided he would try his chances on the small station rather than simply waiting for his ship to be boarded. He gave the automatic transporter the coordinates, and beamed off his ship into a small hallway. He noticed several guards standing near the end of the curved hallway, so he dipped through a randomly chosen door. He found himself standing in a control room. The guards on duty turned around, shocked at his sudden appearance and Lore whipped out his hand phaser in a flash. With both guards down, he scanned through the station's logs, looking for the lightest and fastest ship he could find. _Port 7, access 0449044129. _Lore dashed out of the control room and walked briskly down the halls. Reaching his destination, he punched in the 10 digit access code and was granted entrance to the ship. Marveling at its advanced design, he clamored inside, stifling back laughter at his new found toy. He revised his attempts to break into the clearance systems and weaved his way out of the station's docking port. Lore's new craft launched in the direction of open space, but failed to advance. The largest vessel latched hold of the ship in a white haze. Caught in between the tractor beam of the large vessel and his own ship's engines, Lore was pulled into the range of the gravity disturbances on the massive planet.

An alien alert system blared through the cabin, warning him of his collision course with the planet's atmosphere. Lore silenced the system with a flick of his hand and continued punching in commands into the main routing panel. The heat from the increasing hull temperature began to affect the environmental controls; he estimated it to be somewhere near 60 degrees Celsius inside the cabin.

As he frantically skimmed through all the specifications on the ship, he ran across some very interesting information on a special kind of shielding used solely during vortex travel. He had never heard of vortex travel but the theory of the shielding looked much more promising in holding up against the atmosphere than the other shielding systems integrated into the design of this vessel. Running out of time, he initiated the ship's vortex procedures and fastened himself into his seat.

.

.

Lore wrestled with the safety restraints tangled around his body, struggling to free himself. His ship was planted upside down in the surface so he had to break through an emergency hatch near the aft of the small vessel. The sun met his eyes with such a blinding intensity that he reached up instinctively to cover his face from the light until they had the chance to adapt. The temperature of the air was not much cooler than the inside of the battered ship. As his eyes adjusted, he observed that his ship had crashed on a flat, desert landscape. After assessing the damage of his ship, he resolved to continue on foot. Gazing across the scorching wasteland, he sighed with dismay at the long hike ahead of him.

* * *

><p>"Sir, we're picking up a signal from the northwestern sector of the desert. Our sensors show that a craft crashed there about eight hours ago."<p>

Commander Ilyn sighed. _Finally_. They had been searching the area for nearly a day, and to be honest, she was not expecting to find anything; she believed it was far more likely that the ship was destroyed upon entering the atmosphere. "Send out a scout ship to pick up the fugitive."

"Sir, they've already gone down to the surface and scanned the area. They found the missing science vessel but they found no evidence of the fugitive." The young lieutenant appeared nervous in the face of his commanding officer and his lack of confidence only proved to irritate her further. Her dark eyes scanned his comm station.

"Advise them to keep searching, he cannot have gotten too far on foot."

"Yessir."

Hours later, the sensors from an Idhaman ship picked up on Lore's positronic signature. He was wandering dangerously close to the Forbidden Lands, drifting towards the mountain range in his area. The Forbidden Lands were the southern portion of the southern desert, which occupied seventy percent of the continent's land mass, and were forbidden to set foot upon by any sentient being.

* * *

><p><em>Lore reached out to his brother instinctively, his hand trembling. <em>Amazing..._ they were identical in appearance; right down to the golden irises. He found himself smiling as he wondered what else they might have in common. "You may call me Lore."_

Lore marched through the desert, letting the mirages on the horizon play tricks on his mind. He had been walking for nearly seven hours and the sun was beginning to set to the east of his path. After a while, the sun's heat had dissipated into a dull warmth which was carried by the wind. He was content with the idea of being stranded here for the remainder of his years, walking towards the mountain range.

* * *

><p>After on <em>Freaks and Icons<em> © dZihan & Kamien


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

[Indra by Thievery Cooperation]

Jamaal brushed her fingertips over the rough green cover of her copy of the _Lemas_. It contained a vast collection of religious teachings along with folklore passed down through the generations. It contained The Old Testament, which prophesized that a small, orphaned child would be found under the rubble of a great war between the two nations. The child, Amirin (or Amirah), it was named, would lead their nation out of _hirishan_, the period of blindness. Many believed that it was Jamaal's destiny to fulfill this prophecy. Though she held herself against the teachings of Lemnan, she saw prophecy as perverted divination and chose not to believe.

She lifted her gaze from the text to scrutinize herself in a full mirror. She believed her race to be so beautiful but here she stood, her appearance a stark contrast to the others around her. Her complexion was much fairer than the common phenotype for skin in her species. She did not resemble any others in the variety of her species. Her blue eyes were a tribute to these differences. And more often than not, differences were held in contempt. How did anyone accept her as she was? Turning away in anger, she tried to ignore her insecurities. Why should her appearance matter? She was a member of the Imperial College and a High Priest of Lemnan; she had earner her title nearly six years ago. The Empire was vast… the rich culture which surrounded her civilization, surrounded her as well, it _changed_ her. And though she was not born here, Lemnan was as much home to her as it was to those around her.

She remembered nothing of Idham when she was a child. She was taken from the chaos when she was only an infant and raised as a member of Lemnan under the watchful eye of the High Priest at the time. Her father nurtured her into a leader, trained in the arts of history, religion, diplomacy and combat; she was born into her role. She received the rank of High Priestess at only twenty years of age. Then, as she did now, she stood with her head held high, even in the face of imminent desolation. She loved her home and nothing could change that. The desert to the south was where she would die.

"Priestess," a voice patched through her comm system. "We have received a request to meet with an Idhaman emissary in a nonaligned location."

"I'm on my way to the office now." She snatched a tablet off of island countertop on the way out of her house. Out in the streets, a crowd of unique people congregated on the block. A guard met her and flanked her side as she paced through the crowd. The smells of food and a mixture of music met her senses as she made her way through the masses of people. Street vendors were selling a variety of foods, artesian crafts and many other effects out in the monotonous alleyways. One woman shouted at her with a small child squirming in her arms.

"Priestess, priestess! Amirah! Can you see?" The woman's desperate cries dissolved into weeping as she sunk to her knees, soaking the hem of Jamaal's shirt. The name 'Amirah' directly translated to 'savior' in her language, it was given to her as a pseudonym that mirrored the old stories told by the elders to their young children. The title was her vanity, and it was the secret to her triumphs.

The Idhaman emissary was requesting to meet on behalf of some interesting readings they found near an exoplanet in the solar system. Jamaal read through most of the reports and set the padd onto the table, too irritated to continue.

"Tell them to send our regards and to continue scanning the area for any other disturbances. I'm afraid were too busy to meet with them as we're dealing with our own little exploit from last night. Eames, have they tried communicating with the foreign trespasser?"

The middle aged man looked up from his work, his dark grey eyes glittering with vigilance. "He has said that there is some kind of misunderstanding but the fact that he already speaks our language fluently makes me believe that there is _no_ misunderstanding and that his presence is hostile."

"I would like to speak with him, please have him transferred here." Eames nodded. "Thank you. Keep up that attitude, it's why you're here in the first place."

"No pep talks please, Jim." At his words she smiled.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, Lore was sent to a holding facility in the capital of Lemnan. He paced back and forth in his cell, stressing. What if they sent for the Federation? Lore was a fugitive and he had been ever since his run-in with the Enterprise. The force field was lowered and a slender woman, probably about a meter and a half tall, stalked into the room as though she owned it.<p>

"Hello." She began, eyeing him wearily. Lore did not respond, only glaring at her.

"My name is Jamaal." He shrugged, lifting his cuffed wrists.

"_And?"_

"Generally that is an invitation for you to give your name."

"And if I refuse?" She did not answer and he sighed. "You may call me Lore."

"Lore…. would you like to explain to me what you were trying to do with my ship?"

"_Your_ ship? Oh yes," He smirked. The one he had stolen. "That ship."

"Yes." Her eyes narrowed.

"I was _trying_ to escape." _Wouldn't it have been nice if I had gotten away..._ He voiced a question which had been troubling him ever since his capture. "Tell me, how did you find me… out in the desert?"

She took a seat next to his cot, spine rigid. A white tank shirt hung loosely around her frame and was tucked neatly into a pair of khaki-colored jockey pants. "We locked on to your positronic signature."

"Positronic…? How did you know to scan for that?" He frantically searched her face, looking for anything that would give away her thoughts; but her eyes were veiled and Lore could not judge her character.

"Procedure. There are Idhaman scientists who have experience in those matters." She paused and changed the subject, relaying back to her previous stature. "That was a nice touch using our vortex technology to protect yourself from the atmosphere. We thought you would surely burn up that kind of environment."

"I have been known to be the crafty type, when it so pleases me."

She snorted. "…When it so pleases you." _Like you had a choice…_ She sobered."And where are you from, Lore?"

"I have already answered these questions, I'm from the Federation."

"Very well." She flipped through the file folder she had in her lap. It was true; she _did_ already know these facts.

"Well, we will contact the Federation and let them know that you are here."

"Do not." Lore went to stand and reached out to her, but the cuffs restrained his arm to the table. "Please." He added hastily, returning to his seat.

"Ahh. And why not?" Lore sighed. He was getting the feeling she knew more about him than she let on.

"I'm not on the best terms… with them."

"So you're a fugitive?" She raised her eyebrows and nodded, intentionally over-generalizing the situation.

"…Yes, I guess."

"What are you doing _here_?" That information was _not_ in her folder.

"Exploring."

"_'Exploring.'_"

"Yes. This kind of opportunity doesn't present itself very often. The opportunity to explore and… to make new friends." He smiled an openly false grin. She was not amused.

"Lore, this… _opportunity_… you called it, it's invading our way of life. We have no wish to interact with outsiders. Not the federation… nor enemies of the federation. You will depart for the Terran System and you will not return. Speak nothing of us. We do not wish for the whole of the Federation to know of our existence."

"Jamaal… you're already on the map. They know where you are. They know what you're capable of." Jamaal sighed, gritting her teeth. And with his words she stormed out of his cell, motioning with a flick of her wrist for the guards to replace the field in her absence.

Commander Ilyn stood waiting outside the cell with one dark eyebrow raised in skepticism. Jamaal nodded for her to walk at her side.

"Another '_explorer'_." Jamaal hissed the word with disgust.

The Commander spoke hesitantly "I suspect they wish to gain our trust because of the dilithium supply…. The same motivation of the last scouts we encountered. Priestess, we cannot hide our existence for very much longer. More are destined to return…" Jamaal only shook her head.

"We will continue to practice the old ways. Contact Idham, we may have to set up some kind of perimeter around our system. I'm growing tired of our little visitors."

* * *

><p>"<em>And though I am not ordinary…. I am a citizen."<em> Oh god you guys. I think I am in love with Miranda Tate. Jamaal did make her appearance in my imagination long before I saw the new Batman but wow… these two. ( _"It's the slow knife… that cuts deepest."_ Chillschillschillschills)

[ Author's Note: Jamaal is twenty six years of age in their time measurements but the years on Lemnan are longer so she's probably closer to 30. Also, I'm sorry if the dynamics of this area are unclear. Most scenes will take place on the planet (Lemnan) which has two 'factions' Idham and Lemnan (planet named accordingly). The star system also has several other planets, including two which are class-M and one which is class-G. Not to mention several gas giants and the exoplanets as well.]


	5. Chapter 5

[Author's notes: Alright, this chapter is based strongly (90%) on the episode 'Brothers' by Rick Berman and is a little on the lengthy side (but that is entirely because of Rick Berman's genius). Also, feel free to be impressed by my knowledge of the term 'forceps' as I chuckle evilly to myself. Comments and constructive criticism always welcomed.]

Draining - Silversun Pickups

Chapter 5

Lore gazed out over the night metropolis from atop the Rand Building, which was one of the largest sky scrapers in the city. _Perhaps I'll find my way up here again. _He sipped at his glass of champagne, celebrating the New Year on Olympus with a few people who, in another lifetime, he might have called friends.

Lore glanced at the large clock which hung in the middle of the elaborately decorated hall. _Two hours to go..._Natalia sauntered up to him, wearing a dress that was designed for murder. He smirked, taking an excessive amount of time to look her up and down, much to her delight.

"Why are you standing up here alone?"

"Enjoying the sights." He replied too casually.

"I'll join you." She rested her elbows on the balcony, watching him out of the corner of her eye.

"What's on your mind?" Natalia always seemed too distant to talk with and he was surprised when she asked him such a personal question. Nevertheless, he dodged the inquiry, as he always did with women such as her.

"Oh… I'm just thinking about how _sad_ I'll be when I'm spending the rest of my last night here _alone._" He feigned his lightheartedness as he rested his hand gently over his collarbone.

"I would join you but I know we wouldn't do anything _fun_. We would probably just end up playing cards. Again." Lore grinned and tipped his head to the side. He _was _an adamant poker player.

"But you don't know that. And you're only worried about playing cards because you know I would _win_."

"We will see about that." Her tone was lofty; it was obvious she was not talking about a card game any longer.

"Natalie!" Someone called her from across the room.

"I'll stop by later tonight to say goodbye." She whispered and gave him that signature look of hers as she strolled back over to a group of wealthy-looking men.

Only hours later did Lore find himself wandering into Natalie's lavish apartment with her trailing behind him. She looked around the studio with distant eyes. Lore sat casually on her couch, picking up a news tablet and pretending to be interested in the Olympus news headlines. He did not get very far into the story before Natalia slid into his lap with seductive intent, easing her hands down his chest. She _was_ very attractive, her blood-colored hair framing her confident shoulders and cascading down her back in curls. But Lore was not about to tell her any of _that_.

He wrapped his hands around her wrists, preventing her from moving any further. She let out a moan in the back of her throat which almost sounded like a purr. He could not believe it, she was actually _enjoying _this.

"Natalie, no." Lore could not understand why he was rejecting her. His stomach churned. Something buried underneath, something _programmed _inside was preventing him from continuing.

He gently moved her to the space next to him on the couch.

"What is it?" She moved in closer to him, biting at the corner of his ear. _Wrong, so wrong._"Am I not _attractive_ enough for you?" He said nothing and she froze, backing up a little.

"No." He said soberly. "We're too different… I'm not human, I mean… do you even know what I _am_? We're two completely different species…"

She pursed her lips, grinding her teeth.

"Fine. Get out." Her tone was ice cold and caused Lore to raise his eyebrows indignantly. She would not even look at him. He rose and swiftly exited her flat. Standing out in the hallway for a moment, he contemplated what had just happened. For whatever reason, the memory of the feeling of her hands running down his chest made him feel dirtier than he ever had before… it made him feel _evil_.

Returning to his run-down apartment, he got into the shower to try and let the water cleanse his feelings of filthiness. The hot water ran over his skin for nearly an hour, but once he realized that his feelings of sin could not be cleansed by a shower, he stepped out of the stall into his frigid bathroom. During his absence, the season on Olympus had turned cold and the tile under his feet was chill to the touch. He dressed swiftly, sliding on his heavy boots. Inhaling deeply, he looked around his room. It felt as though he was suffocating; there was no room to think. Unable to remain static, he nearly ripped the apartment door off its hinges, and bolted down the stairs. He exited the building through an old emergency escape, which no longer functioned as anything more than an alternate exit.

Out in the streets, he wandered aimlessly, with no particular goal in mind. As he scanned the crowd with pale eyes, he noticed people passing him by with curious glances. It was a sobering thought, to step outside one's self and ponder what any one individual among the crowd might be thinking about _him_. He jerked his head up sharply as a group of construction workers dropped a large piece of building material down onto a pile of rubble, giving off a resounding crash. All at once, Lore was sick of the people surrounding him, bumping into him, breathing on him. He needed somewhere to hide, somewhere where he could observe, with the remote detachment of a scientist. And then he remembered: the Rand Building.

At the top of his escape, he watched in fascination as the tiny lights from cars and buildings glittered like the electrical impulses that ran through his neural pathways. In truth, Lore loved heights. To be up high where he could watch everything and have no one watching him; it was almost like being a god. Lightning struck on the horizon as deep blue clouds rolled over the city. His sensitive ears picked up the sound of thunder in the distance, a deep bass sound which struck a chord in his chest. The wind pressed lightly against his face; it smelled faintly of the distant sea. Lore closed his eyes and with the sensation that he had fallen asleep, he reopened them to find he was not in his starting place.

"That should do it." A vague sense of elapsed time washed over him but did little to relieve his confusion. The first sight which met his eyes was that of his father. He had aged quite a bit since Lore had last seen him but the old sparkle in his eyes was still there. In an instant Lore was overcome with joy. Lore believed him dead and yet he stood there next to him, hunched over under the weight of time. How many times had he wished he could see his father just one more time... but Data stood beside him and all his feelings of joy were ripped away from him, leaving him cold in his skin.

"So… you're still alive." Lore tried to act as though he did not care. He may have fooled Data but his father could always see right through him. "I'm surprised you woke me, why didn't you just disassemble me again and be done with it? That is why the two of you captured me, isn't it?" If they were going to deactivate him, he wished they would have done it before waking him. He would have preferred his last memory to be the relaxed atmosphere from atop the Rand Building. Instead he was here amongst confusion and rekindled memories. Lore cleared his thoughts as he worked to put his emotions back in check. He stole a glance at his surroundings. The walls surrounding him looked like a haphazard cross between a science lab and a natural history museum.

"Data had nothing to do with this." Lore could see that Dr. Soong may have found his remark humorous if the situation were not so serious. "And nobody _captured _you. Not exactly anyways…

"You see, both of your brains contain a simple homing device. Data's was activated purposely. Yours… well until you walked through that door, I had no idea you had been reassembled."

"No thanks to you." He bit back at his father's stinging comment. He was summoned by _accident_. Lore stood angrily, unable to sit still. "But thanks to you, _Dear Brother_, I spent nearly two years drifting in space. If it hadn't been for a fortunate encounter with a _Pakled _trade ship, I'd still be out there."

"I had no alternative. You would have destroyed the Enterprise," _And I'd do it again. _Lore scoffed at his brother's words.

"Well, since I seem to be an uninvited guest at your _little party_, I'll leave you with your most beloved son… and be on my way." A sickly smile spread across his face and he stalked around his father, stealing one last look at him, but Dr. Soong called after him.

"Lore, wait! There are questions I can answer! You'll have no chance to ask them later you see… I'm dying." His words left a hollow ringing in Lore's body which stopped him in his tracks. "Yeah. I'm dying."

"Dying from what sir?" Dr. Soong turned at the sound of Data's gentle voice. Lore did not hear him.

"Wait a minute…" He started, his voice a tiny whisper. "_Wait a minute_! What do you mean you're _dying_? You look fine." Lore's voice broke around the word 'fine' as he fought back the growing lump in his throat. He bounded down the steps, itching to clear the distance between them. "You're not that old, you look fine… what- what is this some kind of _trick_?" The undertone in his voice suggested he did not really believe it was a deception.

"I wish it were." Lore looked into his father blue eyes and swallowed hard, using every fiber in his body to fight back tears. A long silence spiraled before anyone was able to speak.

"I don't- I don't understand." Lore remembered his first years when his father was much younger than he was now. Lore had learned about mortality and how it did not apply to him. He remembered fearing the day when he might lose his father… and now that day was approaching in full realism.

"Ask me anything you want to know. Either of you." Dr. Soong added as an afterthought.

Data looked to Lore uncertainly. Turning to his father again, Lore asked "You know I still don't understand… I always tried to be what you wanted me to be… I tried to follow in your footsteps. Why would you deactivate me?"

"I… did what I had to do." His voice was full of rue.

"_'You did what you had to.'?_" Lore laughed, shaking his head. "What kind of an answer is that?"

"The only one I can give you." Dr. Soong rested his head in his hand and Lore felt himself soften a little. He really was so old.

"You took me apart." Lore fought back his emotions. It made no sense to him. He was loyal to his father, he always had been. And his father betrayed him, telling him that he was going to help him, to _fix _him. But he never got around to it. His attention was centered on Data.

"Lore told me that the colonists petitioned you to construct a _less perfect _android."

Dr. Soong shook his head, wagging his finger at Lore in disapproval. "The last thing you should think of yourself as, Data, is less perfect. You two are virtually _identical_… except for a bit of programming..." _Virtually identical?_ Lore was amazed his father would say something like that. That _bit of programming _defined who they were as individuals. It would be like saying any one human is exactly the same as the next, except for a bit of genetics.

"It was a lie. Another lie." Lore rolled his eyes at his brother. Did he understand _anything _beyond its surface value?

Lore turned back to his father. "I would have proven myself worthy to you, if you had just given me a _chance_. Instead it was just easier to take me apart and build your precious _Data._"

"_You_ were the first, you meant as much to me as Data ever did. But you were unstable. The colonists were not envious of you, _they were afraid of you_. You were unstable."

"Why couldn't you just _fix _me?" Lore begged his father to explain it to him in a way that he could understand. "It was within your power to fix me."

"It wasn't as simple as that… The next logical step was to construct Data. Afterward I planned to get back to you, to fix you." Lore could hear the sincerity in his voice. He did not care.

"_'Next logical step…'_" he pushed his sentimentality aside and scoffed at his father.

"I am not less perfect than Lore." Data was still marveling to himself, off in his own world. Lore's irritation flashed out and he attempted to bring his brother back down to earth.

"_'I am not less perfect than Lore.'_"

"_Enough_! Both of you sit down." It seemed as though the father was fed up with his sons' bickering. "After all these years, I've been plagued by what went wrong. With all of your complexities, Lore, your nuances… basic emotion was _simple _by comparison.

"But it turned and twisted… and tangled with ambition… Lore… If I had known you were no longer sitting on some distant shelf in pieces… that I could have simply pressed a _button _to bring you here, I would have spent my last years working to make things right for you as well. But all I knew of was Data. And I've worked long and hard, and I believe I've succeeded. This… Simple feelings, Data. Your feelings." Dr. Soong held up a tiny chip in between a pair of forceps.

Lore glanced at the look of pure awe on Data's face. _No…_Not Data, not his brother. The emotions would destroy him. Lore felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach, fear spiraling in his body… fear for his younger brother. In that instant, Lore realized that Data's wellbeing was far beyond his own. He was not about to let him become their father's final _experiment_. Lore would do anything to protect Data now. He himself may be dysfunctional, beyond help; but, if he could do anything, it would be to protect his brother.

"I've imagined how hard it's been for you. Living amongst beings so moved by emotion…" Data's goal in life was to be as human as possible and having emotions was a colossal step in that direction. Lore knew that it would never come to that. The emotions would devastate Data, in the same way they destroyed him. Androids simply were not meant to deal with something as foreign and primitive as feelings; Lore believed Data's abilities would be superior without them. He simply had no idea how lucky he was, so lucky that emotions were not fully integrated into his programming, as they were with Lore.

"I don't have to imagine. I know how hard it's been. You'd be surprised Data… feelings do funny things. You may even learn to understand your evil brother. To forgive him." The words were almost choked out. He knew how much Data wanted this.

"You and I will be more alike, Data, you'll see..." They never would be, he was sure of that. "You know, I'm happy for you."

"I question your sincerity, Lore."

Dr. Soong huffed a short laugh. "Perhaps with this," he indicated to the chip "you will learn to be more trusting, Data. Your older brother has had good reason to be bitter."

"But sir, Lore is responsible-"

"He wasn't given the chance that you and I were given… to live. But now I'm sure he understands. That I did what I had to do. If there was only time, Lore. What a shame." _A shame?_ Lore pulled his thoughts away from Data as he struggled to keep his face straight of the anger which was rapidly consuming him like a dry-wood fire. _This is_ your _fault. You destroyed me._ Lore could not believe he would try again. After one unsuccessful attempt, he would try _again_. Lore would show him how wrong he was, how wrong _emotions _were.

"The procedure is fairly simple… I'm tired. I need to rest." As he hobbled towards his quarters, Data turned towards Lore. If he had not known better, Lore would have thought he looked fearful. He gave Data a quip of a wink.

When Dr. Soong roused the next morning he found Data alone in his lab and the Enterprise was the only ship remaining in orbit.

He sighed sadly, looking into Data's eyes. "He's gone." Data nodded. "I'm sorry, Data…. Now are you sure you are ready?"

"Yes." He spoke confidently, eyes glittering with anticipation. Dr. Soong smiled at how animated he was, even without emotion.

"Very well. Have a seat Data." Dr. Soong opened the sector of his subdermal matrix where a portion of empty circuitry was waiting. As soon as he did, Data passed into a natural unconsciousness which was part of his programming. The empty circuitry had remained there until Dr. Soong was finally ready to reconnect the filament links which ran from his anterior cortex down into his organic/inorganic interface. The interface dually served as a catalyst for the physical aspect of emotion… and the actual 'feelings' which were perceived by the brain. After the chip was in place, his neural mesh resealed and he gasped into consciousness.

Dr. Soong marveled when Data began singing an old folk song, a smile growing on his face. "Data? How do you feel?"

"I always loved that old ditty." He threw his head back and laughed. "But I could never get the tune quite right. Thank you father."

"You called me father."

"Well what would you prefer I called you? Often Wrong?"

Dr. Soong peered curiously at his son "What did Lore tell you about that?"

"That is what the colonists called you isn't it? Often Wrong Soong." Lore's face tweaked. "It's a very sloppy rhyme. Wrong, Soong? You know, it just doesn't work! Let's see-"

"Data. How are you feeling?"

"Often Wrong's got a broken heart, can't even tell his boys apart!" He grinned.

"Lore."

"Well, well. You're not as feeble as I thought you were."

"No, this won't work. Those circuits, they weren't designed for you! Where's Data?"

"_'Where's Data?'_ You didn't construct Data with substandard parts, did you, Old Man? No… that honor was bestowed upon _me_. You owe me, Old Man. Not him… _me_." Data be damned, this was between Lore and his father now.

"It's not meant for you. You're not listening to me, it must be removed!"

Lore scoffed. "Nice trice, Old Man. Nice try." Lore stood angrily, but stopped short of his father. His systems jolted and he suffered a temporary lapse in consciousness. He paused and frantically analyzed his inner workings.

"I don't know what it's doing… but it's doing something." He grinned, a wild look in his eyes.

"Lore, I didn't know you were alive." Dr. Soong reached out to touch his son's arm and Lore retaliated with fury; he could not stand the idea of his father touching him. Lore twisted his wrist in anger and threw him over the workstation next to them. Silver tools and stacks of papers went in every direction. Without a glance backwards, he pressed a button nested in the circuitry underneath his fingernails and transported back to his own ship while still singing the rhyme which was stuck in his head.

I want a bumper sticker that says 'I love my beta reader".


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Warning Shots by Thievery Corporation (The Cosmic Game 2005)

Lore froze on the transporter pad of his once-familiar ship. For a moment, he thought he had rematerialized somewhere else and the adrenaline compound rushing through his bio-systems had caught him off guard. Chuckling at himself, he plopped down in front of the navigation panel on the tiny bridge of his vessel. Lore began flipping switches on the controls of his ship, taking it out of orbit with a smirk still plastered to his face. The impulse engines of his battered ship lagged against the magnetic field of the planet.

He gasped as his systems malfunctioned again, ripping him from his temporary distraction. The grin slid from his face and real panic gripped him. _What the hell?_ His father must have been right about the chip's compatibility with his systems. Lore rested his chin on his chest, his hands folded tightly on the back of his neck. His breathing slowed to a stop without him noticing and he curled up around his torso, choking on dry sobs as though he were having some kind of seizure. A wave of shock hit him again when he remembered the sight of Dr. Soong lying in a crumpled heap, covered in papers flying in all directions. He laughed, remembering each tiny detail in perfect clarity and struggled to push the memory from his thoughts. Maybe there was a way to end this. His twisted mind was only becoming more tangled and it was becoming difficult to distinguish between reality and memories. Lore did not want to end his life, he wanted help. But he also did not want to run the risk of Data finding the emotion chip. Lore would disappear from his brother's reach, taking Dr. Soong's evil with him. Reaching out, he punched in the coordinates for the Bajoran wormhole.

Lore struggled with his internal workings as the emotion chip began destroying his systems one at a time, driving him delirious. Every blink of his eyes brought an uncomfortable flash of light, so he resolved to keep his eyes shut. Trying to slow his pulse, he resumed his breathing and shut his systems down into a more manageable state.

* * *

><p>The first thing that met Lore's consciousness was the sound of quiet murmuring drifting through the darkness from all around him. He tried to sit up but instantly discovered that his body was being held down by restraints. He gently tested their limits, trying not to attract any more attention to himself than what he already had. When he finally opened his eyes the murmuring ceased. There was a pause before one of the men spoke to him slowly, cautiously.<p>

"Android." Lore rolled his eyes. "For what purpose have you invaded Lemnan territory?" _Lemnan? _Lore thought for a moment. His navigation systems…. He remembered trying to pilot through the Raan star cluster but his ship's navigation systems had gone out along with helm control.

"_Invaded_?" Lore shook his head. "I was only passing through the system."

One of the more slight scientists leaned over and whispered in her neighbor's ear. Lore was able to pick up the words with his sensitive hearing. "You had better contact Dakkar Internal Security, I believe Commander Ilyn will know how to handle this more effectively than us."

Without another word, they turned to leave and Lore watched them go. He already had begun to plan several escape plots, none of which involved pleading for release. The thick steely door slid back into its place leisurely, begging him to try and break through.

In one swift motion, Lore reached his hand around, breaking through the small inverters which powered the force field cuffs restraining him to the sterile table. He sat up and snapped through similar models wrapped around his waist and ankles. In less than two-point-nine seconds he had freed himself, though noting with irritation that they had rendered him nude. Sadly, this was not the first time Lore had awoke to find himself naked under someone else's supervision.

His motions across the room tripped a security alarm and Lore was made aware of the two guards rushing through the entrance of the lab. Taking out two officers was easy enough but Lore was still running blind. The Lemnan people were somewhat advanced for a remote civilization but their security protocols were rather negligent as they placed so much faith in their own isolation. Lore did not doubt that he would be able to find an escape. His mind was in overdrive as he dressed himself in one of the officer's tactical uniforms but abruptly he froze and noted that something was different; something inside his mind. He ran a quick diagnostic on himself and realized… Data's emotion chip was missing. _Interesting._ Lore wondered how they knew how to remove it or that it was even _there_. He began to wonder how much they knew about him and whether or not they would try to use it to their advantage.

Out in the hallway, Lore slipped the polarized visor over his eyes, shielding the most obtrusive aspect of his appearance. Even without his pale gold skin, Lore's eyes would have been a dead giveaway to any officers patrolling the halls. He began making his way towards what he believed was a transport terminal. Pivoting around a corner, he ran headlong into a group of about twenty security officers. Using the blunt of the phaser rifle, he bashed it over the helmet of one while firing off several shots. In a blaze of red phaser fire, Lore took several shots to his central processor and, again, lost consciousness.

* * *

><p>Jamaal's eyes were closed against the white light which gently fell down her face from its highest point in the sky. Her palms rested on her ankles and her breathing was slowed nearly to a halt. Columns etched with runes from the Old Books surrounded the marble steps which descended into a large rectangular pit where tan-colored sand lay warming in the sun. She sat on a platform which was elevated above the sand. The space above her was open to sky and the sun beat down at a ninety degree angle; it was exactly mid-day.<p>

Every morning, Jamaal would come here as a part of her studies. Only the most intensely trained in religion would practice such a ritual and despite her daily agenda, Jamaal still came to meditate. She would try to remember why she had accepted the responsibilities as High Priestess and hold true to those foundations. She would ponder her own existence and try to appreciate the forces which governed life on their planet.

Her culture's religion was centered around their sun. The sun was the reason why life existed the way it did. Everything had come together so perfectly and even the tiniest change in the creation of her world would have altered everything. All of these things she learned of when she was not much more than a child. Though she had never known her biological parents she had only the highest respect for the man she called 'father'. He had also been an influencing factor for her to continue her education. He had passed away when she was only twenty, leaving her to her own responsibilities. A quiet chirp interrupted her thoughts and she opened her eyes against the light. She knew it would be Commander Ilyn. Rising swiftly, she padded through the warm sand in her bare feet.

"What do you need Commander?" Her voice sounded tired, like she had been woken up in the middle of her sleep, but Jamaal was curious enough as to the reason for the disturbance. Only Commander Ilyn would have something important enough to interrupt Jamaal while she was in her reverie.

"Sir, the Idhaman cybernetics facility has discovered a refugee. It's the android. One of our military scouts discovered him while conducting a routine inspection near the Raan star cluster."

_Android..?_ "Lore." She already knew who Ilyn was referring to. "I will be returning to my office shortly, please join me."

Jamaal had only been gone about half an hour and her padd had received over a hundred new communications. The most disruptive were those in response to discovering Lore. The first time he had wandered into their star system and crashed his vessel, Jamaal had done as much as she could to mask the situation. This time, the entire scientific community of Idham was involved and there was not much she could do to salvage the situation.

A distinct sense of déjà vu washed over Lore as he sat, hands clasped left over right, in an interrogation room with a secured force field entrance. He had been waiting for over thirty-one hours and no one had yet bothered to tell him where he was. Boredom washed over him in waves but before he could begin to grow frustrated once again, the force field hissed out of place and then back again. Lore watched as the same woman he encountered during his last visit haphazardly tossed her padd onto the metallic table with an audible clatter and pulled out a chair for herself.

She sat flipping through documents on the tablet for what seemed like forever.

"Who- who are you?" She asked, as though she genuinely had no idea.

"My name is Lore." She raised her eyebrows and Lore only watched her, feeling somewhat confused. "Haven't we already been through this before?"

"Yes. And we would not have to go through it a second time if I believed you the first time." Jamaal took a deep breath, her patience growing thin. "So I'll ask you again. Who are you?"

"I have already answered this." Lore stared blankly, masking his own irritation.

"Alright, fine. Why are you here? _Again_?"

"I have already told you that I'm a fugitive. I have no home to return to."

"Which is why you tried, so _violently,_ to escape? A dozen _trained_ officers were seriously injured."

"…It's just my nature." She nodded. That she understood. For a moment, they sat staring at one another. She knew that he believed he was telling the truth, though none of it added up in her book.

"Lore, you will be shipped back to Dakkar. I trust you know how to stay out of trouble for at least that long." Before he could respond, she stood and left him alone.

Lore was finally released, but he learned that his ship was completely obliterated in the Raan star-cluster. Unsure of how to proceed, he requested to meet Jamaal out in one of the bazaars which were so commonplace in her civilization.

"You know, on my way out of the facility… I couldn't help but notice so many supply ships docked out in the hangers. It also looks like you're building new additions to the fleet. Tell me, you're not planning on doing a little space exploration, are you?" He grinned and she only returned with a small, sad smile.

"Quite the contrary. No, actually Lore, I need to know from you. Do you wish to remain here?" She paused for a few long moments. "We can return you to your home but you see, we're closing our borders, our solar system. If you wish to leave then I would advise you to leave quickly… But of course if you wish to remain, you may remain. The choice is obviously yours… Lore."

"I- I'm not certain." Lore was a fugitive in the Federation. Lemnan offered a sanctuary which no others could provide. Lore also loved to explore… the Raan star cluster was, after all, inside of the Lemnan border. He would be free to explore the large star system without fear of capture or detainment. But was Lore ready to close the gateway between himself and his brother? Data was all he had left of his family now… could he so easily throw him aside as though he were meaningless? Lore watched as Jamaal bounded up the steps to a small, outdoor amphitheater.

"May I think on it for a while?" She turned and nodded.

In an attempt to ease the uncomfortable silence, she gestured to a large instrument which was set in the middle of the large open space. Lore sat down at the seat and stretched his arms out over the keys, striking them in a self-conscious manner.

"They said they removed a piece of hardware from your positronic brain."

"Yes, it was my brother's emotion chip. He can't feel emotion the way I can."

"You have a brother?" She faced him expecting an answer. He did not look up but only nodded, unsmiling. "Forgive me, I'm still getting used to the fact that you are a machine."

"Yes, well the emotion chip was maladapted to my systems and caused cognitive failure."

She nodded. "You know, you play quite well for someone who has never seen this instrument before in their life."

"It reminds me of Earth's piano. Though the design and the layout of the keys are different, the sound is nearly the same." Though Lore had a tuned ear, it had been far too long since he had practiced any kind of music. The notes rang out, resonating through the upper levels of the music hall.

Each one of the keys pulled back a hammer which struck four thin, hollowed-out wires. The wires were wrapped in copper filaments and strung together in four different widths. Each note created a brusque sound, which was amplified against the sound board and then echoed out of the open gate. Each key was extended out from the panel on a thin silver finger which widened at the tip and the playing keys were laid out in three rows stacked on top of each other, so as to make it easier to jump from octave to octave or to play in simultaneous chords.

She sat next to him and stretched out her arms.

"It's called a syndhl. I don't personally play, but I am something of a music enthusiast."

She paused in her dabbling on the keys for a moment and allowed Lore to try it out again. He tried his best to transpose one of his favorite classical works by Schubert into the notes of the syndhl, but was still unsure as to the organization pattern of the keys, so he let his mind wander. He played crisp high notes which were then complemented by the dark, bitter chords on the deeper end of the instrument in contrasting melodies. The two ends of the spectrum complemented each other in way that caused the tones to amplify each other in some kind of emotional spiral. Lore's thoughts were transcribed into the notes of his music. Jamaal gently pressed her palms over Lore's hands and stopped his playing. He met her eyes, and for a moment he swore that he saw something stirring beneath that veil.

A comm station was displaying a small fleet's movements around the border of the Lemnan star system. The lieutenant on duty kept up a constant vigil, fearful that the border would be infiltrated at any given moment. Around and around they circled; each ship on its own unique path. Occasionally, one ship would pause to examine an anomaly around the exterior of the border. They were searching for a way in, testing the shield's strength. He knew this kind of security tactic would not hold forever. There were gaps, ways inside and it was only a matter of time before they found one.

As if reading his thoughts, the comm panel exhibited a flashing warning light in an incomplete section of the border. One of the power stations seemed to have malfunctioned and was now destroyed, leaving several of the surrounding filaments vulnerable.

"Commander!" The young lieutenant turned sharply, anxiety warping his normally smiling face.

"Yes, Lieutenant?"

"The shielding systems are suffering cascade failure in _this_ sector." He pointed to a region on his monitor. "The warships are converging in that area… Our scout ships are relaying messages that their fleet has penetrated our borders."

"Advise them to rendezvous with the rest of our fleet at once." Ilyn's voice was as harsh as a whip and the boy masked a flinch, swallowing back his apprehension.

"Yessir."

As the ships made their way further into the system, they began taking down more of the shield outposts, cutting vital strands in the border's web. The gaps grew like runs in stockings until the openings were wide enough to bring a fleet through. Commander Ilyn glared at the screen as though it was the source of the attempts to undermine her entire civilization. Turning away from the comm panel, she called Jamaal on her communicator.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Sunlight crept through the gaps in the thick wooden slats hanging in the window. Its radiance glared down into Lore's pale eyes, rousing him from sleep. Under the sun's illumination, his irises appeared snow white. Stretching his limber body with content, he thought of how rare it was to get a good night's rest. Sleeping was an unusual activity for Lore. Though he physically did not need sleep, emotions could run up a serious toll on his psyche and sleep offered repose from that stress. Rising from the sheets, he ran his fingers through his unusually chaotic hair. He padded quietly across the cold tile floor in his bare feet and dressed himself in the linen clothes laid out neatly on top of a wide, low-lying dresser. Off the top of his head, he honestly could not remember the last time he picked out clothes for himself.

Wandering shyly down the sunlit hall, Lore noticed intricacy in the style of decor. The strange patterns which were set into the tile and which adorned many of the pieces of furniture reminded him of the Arabesque style of art which originated from Earth's Islamic religion. Its swirling patterns cast long shadows on the slate floor and hypnotized him as he walked through the corridor. With the angle of sun casting down through the windows, he guessed it was probably late-morning.

He ventured into the kitchen and found Jamaal gripping her communicator with white knuckles, her face as placid as ever. She seemed not to notice him as he took a hesitant step towards her.

Jamaal's arm flashed out, smashing through several ornate jars, spilling a mixture of spices onto the counter next to her. The sound of shattering glass accompanied by her frustrated cry reverberated down the hall. Shocked, Lore watched as she sunk to her knees, pressing her clenched fists into her chin while ruby-colored blood glistened down her forearm.

Lore tore off a strip of cloth from the shirt he was wearing and wrapped her arm in its brittle texture. She stared unseeingly at Lore's face.

"What's happened?"

She rested her forehead in her palm, turning her face to the side slightly. Her jaw clenched and she did not speak immediately, taking in a few breaths of air. "Our defenses have failed. The outer perimeter has begun to suffer cascade failure. We began construction far too late… they have already taken too much interest in our system."

"They?" he questioned with serious concern. She stood, as though nothing had happened, though she did clutch lightly at the new white bandage wrapped around her wrist.

"I will meet with Ilyn shortly, please accompany me." Lore nodded slowly, hesitantly.

Out in the courtyard, Lore fell in step behind her, glancing up at a large building which cast them into a shadow. Jamaal followed his gaze up to the peak of the dome structure they were approaching.

"It's the Department of Internal Security..." He followed her through the side door of the complex.

Lore followed her brisk pace through a sleek lobby, the sound of their boots echoing off the marble flooring. "You know, I've spent a considerable amount of time thinking about what might be the best course of action for our world considering our future relations with the surrounding galaxy… and it does bother me to close off the possibilities that exploration offers. But I am not doing this without reason.

"We are aware that our neighbors… the Federation call them the _Dominion_, seem to have taken an interest in our star-system, or more specifically the twin planets Zennah I and Zennah II. These two exoplanets are a significant source of dilithium. With each expedition, we bring back more evidence that the planets, along with our own, are being surveyed. And now they have openly attacked our defense systems." She stopped abruptly and turned to face him as he nearly ran into her. "I do not plan on becoming some sort of _outpost_ or _colony_ of any kind… and these hostilities will not go unpunished." She continued walking.

Jamaal listened patiently to the flawless syntax of the robotic voice playback, relaying the message in a loop.

"…_Civilization inhabiting Gamma-ZX330-B, as your people are currently residing under Dominion territory, you will proceed with the appointed directives. Under the stipulations of the Federation-Dominion treaty, any humanoid civilization within the specified regions will commence in planet-wide evacuation. Failure to execute the specified commands will result in evacuation by force…"_

She had listened to the recording several times and read over the copy of the Federation-Dominion treaty. All attempts at further communication had been answered with background radiation and silence.

Darren Eames was a spectacled man with ashy brown hair that had silvered with age. He always wore a placid hint of a smile, as though he was concealing some hidden joke. His voice was low and hesitant as he spoke seriously to his commanding officer. "Do you really believe they really have the power to _force_ us to evacuate?"

"The Dominion doesn't strike me as the type of empire to make empty threats." Ilyn crouched over the desktop display, her dark eyes flickering across the screen, illuminating her dark skin in a sickly blue light.

"They must have known we would retaliate." Jamaal stood by and watched with knitted eyebrows as Ilyn looked up from her screen.

"I think they were counting on it." She shook her head. "It might be easier for them to obliterate us than to relocate us."

Jamaal turned to face her communications officer. "You're dismissed, Lieutenant Eames." He nodded and she waited until the door clicked behind him.

"Priestess… I implore you. We would be defenseless against this kind of army. We _are_ within Federation territory. If we were to request support, I am certain they would aid us. I believe this may be our last opportunity to preserve our culture."

"No." Jamaal looked up from the comm screen she was scanning as Commander Ilyn paced around the room. "What we would gain from the Federation is incarceration."

"_Liberation_, Jim, is what we would gain from the United Federation of Planets. You are too blinded by the ways of our predecessors to see that."

Jamaal ripped herself from her stance, staring down her subsidiary. "I will do what is necessary for our civilization."

"And you still deny what _is_ necessary."

"That is _enough_… Commander." She tacked on the end as a courtesy. Jamaal's voice was low and dangerous, a snake hiding under the sand. Commander Ilyn swiftly exited the room, her shoulders erect, dissatisfaction evident in her posture. Jamaal followed her with icy blue eyes until the door slammed shut behind her.

Naghera Ilyn stormed down the steps, her face only barely concealing her frustration. Her black hair rippled in waves under the red sun. She unpinned a communications device from her belt and punched a code for a secure channel.

"Eames, has the Idhaman Ambassador departed from Dakkar yet?"

"No, he's scheduled on a shuttle tomorrow afternoon."

"Would you please make an appointment for me before he leaves?"

She shoved her trembling fists into her pockets, and slowed her pace.

* * *

><p>Lore strolled lazily under the orange glow of Dakkar's city lights. Even at night the city gave off a warm, golden haze. He stood gazing over a large crevasse which extended for miles in the center of the city, with yellow lights sprinkling in geometric patterns. While flipping through some of the historical texts, he learned that the city constructed here was originally designed to defend against the more violent sandstorms. Now, as the city extended much further from the chasm, a protective force field shielded the civilization during these recurring events. The desert around the city stretched for hundreds of miles, void of most anything.<p>

There was a fossil record that showed that the south used to be savannah-type grasslands where it was not uncommon for rivers to be found. All that was left today were the mountains to the north and sand. Historical artifacts found on the other continent suggested that at one point their civilization had been unified and stretched across both lands. But there was a period of massive trauma to the earth and they were forced to separate, later becoming mortal enemies to fight for hundreds of years.

Dust swirled under his feet as a breeze picked up, brushing warmth against his face. The city was oddly abandoned at night and Lore relished in the melancholy. Street vendors packed away, the black alleys stripped bare and cleaned.

It would be so easy for Lore to function under a thirty hour day. Sleep patterns were different here for him. While the average humanoid here, if given the option, would sleep for about ten hours, Jamaal never seemed to be at her home. She was always either at her office or in the temples residing high on the cliffs. He looked to them now, but all he could see was a small gleam of gold reflecting from the stout dome and darkness.

Finally growing weary under the night, he began making his way back towards the center of town. He was not sure Jamaal would be leaving her office any time soon, but he figured he would check anyways. Lore found Jamaal a strange alien character but when he looked closely enough, he could as find some of himself. She was a bit reclusive in nature, always wound up in her own thoughts. But she seemed like the kind of person who could always pull through when you needed her.

As he drew nearer to her office, he was nervous he might be disturbing her. Abruptly, the door slid open and Jamaal jerked upright, surprised to see him.

"I would have thought you would have returned home by now. Our hours are a bit longer than yours." She said.

"No… I, uh, don't require rest." She cocked her head and looked at him with a puzzled expression, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Lore scowled. "What?" He demanded but she only shook her head, stepping around him.

Lore questioned her about the nature of the situation earlier that morning.

"The fleet we encountered was small. A scout perhaps, but they were still successful at eliminating a good fraction of our perimeter. I don't think we would hold up against an attack on a larger scale."

"Where are they now?"

"We sent them back in one of their ship's with a warning. The other ships have been confiscated. We can learn from their weapons technology and advance our defenses."

She paused. "You know, they didn't exactly go willingly, at first. Their noses were bruised in the process but they left without taking what they came for."

"Which was?"

"Surrender." Her face softened slightly.

"Lore." He looked up from the dusty soil road to find Jamaal's eyes fixed on his. "Lore, would you say that you trust me?"

He walked along side her, hesitating to answer. "I trust that you have good intentions."

"But do you trust my judgment as a leader?"

"Well, from what I have seen so far, I would. However, whether or not your actions would be appropriate depends as each situation varies."

Lore paused for a long while. "Jamaal. I am not who you think I am... I've hurt people, even people that I have loved."

She stared. "Do you blame yourself for that?"

He did not answer.

"You should not. When my father died, it was my fault for so long. It was not until I achieved my title that I shed my self-hatred."

"I was fearful when you arrived that your intentions were malevolent. We seldom fight with our Idhaman neighbors, but space exploration has brought about a certain… hesitance in my people. The Idhaman culture would reach out with open arms and accept whatever lies waiting outside our world. For Lemnan however, the idea of reaching out and openly blending culture violates everything we've ever been taught."

He did not respond. "You, however, seem fairly open to new ideas. It did not take you long to start learning everything you could about our culture. It surprised me how quickly you learned so much."

It _was_ true. Lore had spent a good number of hours reading through the more contemporary culminations of their history as well as older religious texts. Religion had been an interest of Lore's when he still had interests other than constantly being on the run. Most religion brought about disorder and confusion. Most worlds would throw out any solid religion before finding peace and self-awareness in their Galaxy. However, this particular religion was deeply rooted into the culture of these people and instead of bringing discontent and demise, the people flourished.

In between reading, he listened. He listened to the classic ceremonial music performances which stretched far back into their past. He listened to modern compositions and analyzed the crossing of styles in between. This self-education had developed into a strange hunger at a young age for him. He searched for knowledge now just as he did at the beginning of his life, reading about earth's history and learning as much as he could. He could not stand the idea of events or even someone's thoughts being lost to time.

The situation of Lemnan was not very far off from various other civilizations sprinkled across the Galaxy. Numerous worlds were based on reclusive tendencies and isolation for the preservation of their culture.

"The harmony here is what caught my interest. Where I come from, war is sought out and often romanticized." Lore watched her reaction. "All I have found from war is death and desolation."

"It may seem that way but conflict can also be used as an effective means for peace. My world was not always so quiet. In the past war was necessary to accomplish what we have. In fact, I am who I am today because of war."

Lore's eyebrows knitted together thoughtfully. He had always perceived war as a dead end. He had scoffed at those who glorified war and thought them to be ignorant. But reading through Lemnan's history he knew that what she said was true. Was it just luck that these people have eventually found peace? Or was there a deeper meaning hidden in Lemnan's history?

* * *

><p>Ohheyguys.<p>

There was a lot of **Descent** foreshadowing in this chapter. You better get ready for the best Lore episode ever.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

[**Fkstrtower** by Jetone on Ultramarin]

Lore had his eyes fixed on the view screen, occasionally glancing at the monitor displaying readings of the ionic storm washing over the ship's shields. It appeared as a deep blue cloud front, glowing from the inside and flashing with veins of what looked like interstellar lightning.

Two years ago, he had unknowingly piloted his Pakled vessel into this sector of space, demolishing the ship and nearly taking him with it. Currently, he was aboard a routine science vessel whose complement was about twenty officers. The science vessel was issued by the Lemnan-Idhaman Science Foundation. Lore was onboard, temporarily serving as a science officer.

Their ship dipped beneath the milky outer layer of the nebula, sensors 'tasting' the unique molecular configuration and collecting terabytes of data. The Raan star nebula was two parsecs outside of their own star system and held a certain fascination with the Lemnan people.

Lore continued monitoring the storm, alien symbols on his screen dancing before his eyes. He initially had not intended to stay for such a long period of time, but one week slipped into another and he found it grew more difficult to try and leave.

As Lore began growing roots in the sand of Lemnan, he also found his relationship with Jamaal had grown stronger as well. She shared with him glittering, broken shards of life that he had never known existed. She spent several weeks every year trekking across the desert, under the notion that she was searching for some 'divine cause'. On her last trip, she brought Lore with her, and he returned with a better idea of what he was. He was able to take a step outside of himself and analyze from an exterior perspective. He began to understand that he was somewhat lost. Lost in that sense, from his brother, the last true family he had left.

Though indeed Lore had stayed here for longer than any other home (save the isolation of Omicron Theta), it was only because he found someone who might be as lost as he was. In times when Lore was particularly distressed, Jamaal could find something to say that would diffuse him or if necessary, she would remain silent. And while he was learning to open up to others all over again, Jamaal's home had remained with open doors. She was a friend whom he had never known before.

"Sir, you have a message coming in from Commander Ilyn." The captain of the small science vessel picked up his padd and read through the message, his face growing tense. He was a younger officer, probably about Riker's age when Lore had last seen him. That seemed like so long ago… how long ago had it been? Five years? But the time was different here, creeping by at a slower pace.

"Set course for the nearest outpost, maximum impulse." Several members of the crew were giving the captain quizzical glances. He said nothing.

Arriving at the outpost, Lore saw a few science vessels similar to his own docking at the station. One of the fleet's flagships was also stationed close by. It was impressive merely by design and Lore began picturing how much damage it could inflict with its weapons.

"I have received orders to return with all of my crew to a neutral location."

His first officer began to object but was cut off. "All of the non-essential personnel are being evacuated. We have been told that this arrangement is only temporary." With a last look at his first officer, he turned to address Lore.

"Commander Ilyn has requested you specifically aboard her ship." This only surprised him further. Never once had he contacted his superior officer directly. What reason could she have for granting him the favor now?

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

Naghera Ilyn watched from the viewport as officers came and went aboard the station. She had informed the captains of the transport vessels that Lemnan was not their destination, but she had decided that a location outside of the system would be more secure. Her priestess still had not been informed of the development of this remote location.

Idhaman-Ra was established just after the attacks on their star system. The planet was located far on the outreaches of their own solar system, orbiting a dwarf star, which ranged around a red giant. It was unusual to have a planet with two suns, but it was stable and would support life. The idea spawned between the foreign Idhaman Ambassador and Naghera Ilyn herself as a kind of contingency plan in the face of a crisis. Their society had not needed sanctuary in over twenty-thousand years, but now their culture would need to change as new threats began to arise.

The only inhabitants of the colony now were several Idhaman scientist groups, working to terraform and cultivate the most stable continent.

The door chirped, interrupting her flood of thoughts. Lore entered, stone-faced and quiet. "You sent for me, Commander."

"I did." She attempted a weak smile but her face cracked into a grimace. It was funny; if Lore had not known better, he would have thought she was a Vulcan. "Lore, you know Jamaal and I are on tense ground but I hope that does not impair your judgment of me." Lore shook his head.

"Good." She paused, taking a seat from her standing point at the viewport. "Tell me, how much do you know of the last attack on our borders?"

"I know that the fleet which was encountered was small… easily overpowered. The task was doomed to fail from the start." Something flickered in her eyes.

"And do you know who authorized those attacks?"

"The Dominion… sir." He tacked on as an afterthought. Two years in service and he was still getting used to the idea of serving under others.

"What is your relationship to the Federation?"

"If you are questioning my loyalty, Commander, then you should know that I consider Lemnan my home. My allegiance is with you, sir."

She really did smile this time. "I was counting on it. I have an assignment for you, Lore. You are our only liaison to the outside world. I need you to act as an ambassador, representing our interests."

"What interests?" She did not answer immediately.

"I believe that the time has come to seek aid."

"What kind of aid?" His eyes narrowed slightly. She was dancing around what Lore already knew.

"Military aid."

"You do realize that that is a violation of the council's orders?" She nodded. "And you must have known that I must decline?" Lore grew more and more suspicious of her actions.

"Yes, I understand. But I think that given the more prudent facts at hand, you will come to change your mind."

Commander Ilyn rigidly passed the translucent padd over to Lore, after flicking through a few items. Lore scanned over the device, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Finally, he glanced up at her.

"When are we departing?"

"We will rendezvous with the rest of the fleet in six hours."

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

[**Caligaverunt oculi mei** by Tomás Luis de Victoria from the Tenebrae Responsories]

Lore was assigned a small, light scout vessel, as the only occupant onboard. He served as an observer, waiting for Ilyn's orders. He patched a message through to Jamaal's ship, announcing his presence in a private message directly to her. Her ship was a wing in a great bird of ships positioned together in an attempt to obstruct any opposition.

Suspense gripped him as he watched the ships through a tiny view screen. They were still and dark, being so far away from their sun. They would have been invisible if it were not for the tiny lights representing scant living quarters on each vessel. He had begged Jamaal to stay behind, and she had laughed at the proposal, not unkindly. It was not within her nature to back down from a fight, especially since they were so rare. She had even challenged Lore to the occasional wrestling match, though proving herself to be a sore loser. These were the only times he had ever seen her truly angry and though he did find her behavior peculiar, he never paid it much mind. His attention was beginning to wane and just as he closed his eyes, his comm panel exploded with reports from all sectors of the star system.

Lore watched in horror as a massive fleet of silvery black ships were illuminated as they dropped out of warp, flashes of light from their disrupters exposing the entire scene. The flagships returned the attack with several photon torpedoes fired simultaneously alongside an array of disrupter banks. The first ship went down. However, the battle was not contained within this sector of space. Communications rang through Lore's headset that the opposition was coming in from all over the star system. Distress signals were snatched off by the sounds of explosions followed by dead frequency and silence.

He quickly programmed his sensors to specifically monitor the readouts of Jamaal's ship. Her vessel had taken a few detrimental hits and was teetering while several more of the warships were taken down. Lore attempted to contact the Idhaman emissary through a subspace frequency, requesting aid. There was no reply.

"_Commander, they have infiltrated our ship. Our officers… they're vanishing!"_ Lore could not tell from which ship the message originated. A warning message flashed across his sensor panel and he froze. The symbols **TERMINATED** flashed across the screen. Lore was frantically scanning for Jamaal's ship but all that he could find were chunks of debris, launched from their origin as the remaining ships maneuvered around them. His breath caught in his chest and he attempted to hail the fleet and in return received a short message from Naghera's leading flagship.

Commander Ilyn's ship opened the first vortex, and the rest of the fleet followed suit as the disturbance grew larger, opening its mouth to the crippled ships.

"_Lore!_" The transmission was hazed over with static from the space-time disturbance and cut short but her meaning had been clear. _Flee._

He could only stare transfixed as the remaining ships slipped into the rapidly shrinking vortex while Lore found himself wishing that he was among them.

* * *

><p>AN: The Lemnan culture does not have warp capability. They use vortex travel as means for long distance transport but for the most part they use sublight speed. Also, they don't have transporters. How convenient.<p> 


	9. Chapter 9  Part I

AN: The next three chapters are very long and I don't want to overwhelm anyone with word count. So I may be separating these chapters into two parts.

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

[Complex Heaven - Brain Eno]

Part I

Lore stopped jumping through the tears in space only when he was certain that he was far from the Dominion's clutches. His computer systems came back online and he checked his coordinates. His ship was drifting on impulse somewhere within the exterior delta quadrant. The events of the past days struck him in waves shock; less than thirty hours and he was tossed from the newly lain foundations of his life.

What more than that, was that he was alone. The only real friend who he had ever known, who had been so close to him, was gone from his existence.

And now he was here; the feeling was reminiscent of the death of his father. There was only one person who Lore _knew_ would never leave him in this dull universe. Even over light years it was comforting to know that Data was there, that he was _alive_, and that Lore was not alone. But he could not return to his brother. Not ever.

He pulled out a leather bag of what few personal belongings he had left. An older book containing teachings of Lemnan's religion and the original religious texts. It had a green, burlap cover which he opened and found a note that Jamaal had left, written underneath the title.

_Lore, _

_It is my hope that you learn as much from this as you can and that you find what it is you are searching for._

_Jim_

He flipped it open to a page he had marked.

"_Family is above all else. The threads that are interwoven between us cannot be severed by any sin and will withstand the sands of time." _

With this thought, Lore pulled out a smaller item in his bag. The tiny glass case containing his brother's emotions chip. It still glittered under the dim blinking lights in the cavern of his bridge. Feeling along the side of his skull, just above his ear, he remembered how perfectly he had wronged his brother. How it seemed like the ideal revenge while still justifiable under the pretense of saving his brother's life. It was a reminder of how ruthless he could be. He stuffed the artifact back into his bag.

Lore's attention was snatched back to the sensors as they picked up odd energy readings originating from a ship drifting just off the port bow. Lore put on the view screen and awe washed over him as he observed a massive ship, one thousand times his size, and the shape of a cube. It was illuminated by an internal, neon-green glow. It sat there idly for over an hour with no attempt at communication or any other action.

He hailed the ship with a universal translator. No response, though his scanners registered over four-thousand humanoid life forms aboard. He had no other means of contacting this ship, no transporter and the cube had no visible docking port from what he could tell. Lore fired a short burst of red phaser energy in an attempt to grab the ship's attention.

It seemed to work as the massive ship wrapped a green, hazy tendril around his tiny vessel. As soon as his ship was pulled within transport range, he felt himself go light as he was beamed right off the bridge. He rematerialized in dense, humid atmosphere, aware that several humanoids surrounded him, pointing weapon-like appendages at him. Instantly, Lore was able to identify them as the Borg. What little information he had was based on their physiology. Their cyborg faces covered in mechanical pieces and bodies sheathed in metallic clothing. These were humans that had been altered to serve one specific task as a member of their collective. Without central command, they functioned as one individual consciousness, comprised of many.

But when he was beamed aboard, he noted that they seemed… disorganized, all shouting different questions or outbursts of rage while others had expressions of fascination etched across their faces. Lore noted that many of the Borg were still standing in inside of respite modules, unmoving and lifeless. A smaller individual stepped forward and shouted, trying and catch the attention of the group.

"Everyone, please. Calm yourselves." The Borg turned. "You. What is your name?"

"Lore."

"_Lore_. Can you help us?" The boy took a step forward.

"You are Borg." He began to find his speech again.

"We _are_ Borg."

"This is not natural behavior for the Borg species. What's happened here?"

"We have been severed from the Collective when some of our members began to assimilate individuality. It spread through our ship like a disease, and many could not cope with the concept. Our ship is now crippled as we no longer function as one."

"I see." The chaos was evident in the wreckage surrounding him. Lore hastily pushed away his puzzlement. "Do you have warp capability?"

"We do but I am not sure if I can access it." He led Lore over to an access terminal nested alongside several others each of which looked like they had their own purpose. "The functions of this ship are controlled by root commands. The Collective is not in contact with us so we are no longer receiving these commands." The Borg looked at Lore with one eye, as his other was covered by a mechanical eyepiece. Lore saw fear and desperation in the boy's expression. "If we remain out here any longer then I am afraid we will not survive. Life support is functioning for now but that could give out at any minute along with the other decaying systems."

"My sensors picked up a habitable planet within range before I was beamed aboard. Let me return to my ship, if you can keep contact with me and follow on impulse power, then I may be able to help you."

The boy nodded as there were a few angry shouts of protest.

"What is your name?" Lore asked.

"Hugh." And with that the boy beamed Lore back aboard his relatively tiny scout ship.

.

Grabbing a scanning device, Lore beamed down near a large structure on the planet's surface. He met Hugh and a group of about five, who were all examining the structure with specialized equipment.

"Should we go inside?"

Lore tilted his head back, not taking his gaze from the peak of the pearly white structure. "Well it's easily worth a look."

On the interior of the building, they found a kind of entrance hall with elaborate marble structures offering support to the great arches of stone. Ancient double doors crested with gold led off to hallways with thousands of rooms. The structure also apparently extended underground with an antique pulley system to transport people to and from different levels.

In the hall, Lore gazed up at the blue sky seen through the arches. The ceiling had apparently been made of glass at one point, but the weather had destroyed any remnants left behind. Broken glass littered the floor, popping under his boots.

"You know, I didn't mention it before… but you strongly resemble someone I have met."

"Hm? Is that so?" Lore paced around the great cavernous space, his footsteps echoing off of the marble, his face turned upwards as he walked backward on the balls of his feet, still admiring the ancient, alien architecture.

"Yes... His name was Data." Lore froze, his back still turned to the young Borg.

"When?" He asked with a deadly calm.

"They brought me aboard their ship. Locutus, I mean Captain… Captain Picard. They helped me. Beverly, Geordi. All of them." The names of Data's fellow crewmembers blazed through Lore's mind.

"They taught me what it means to be an individual."

"It was you." Lore turned abruptly, gazing at Hugh with a frank expression.

Hugh stopped, realizing that he had slipped up.

"_You_ brought this to your ship."

Hugh did not answer immediately. "Yes." He swallowed hard. "But I did not mean to harm…" He trailed off as Lore held up his hand for silence.

"Have the others brought here. We have a lot of work to do." Hugh dashed out of sight, not wanting to relive the look on Lore face when he had mentioned Data. Why did the name mean so much to him? Lore's expression suggested that they knew each other. They really did look so much alike... Hugh pushed his thoughts aside as he beamed back to his ship.


	10. Chapter 9  Part II

AN: The next three chapters are very long and I don't want to overwhelm anyone with word count. So I may be separating these chapters into two parts.

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

Part II

.

"Hugh. Are you still in contact with the Enterprise?"

"No. I left them maybe a few weeks ago. They are gone, more than likely."

Lore gritted his teeth. It was just like the Federation to start something they would never finish.

"Well, you and I will have to make do without them. The first thing we will need to get into order is living quarters for your people. We can probably set up few power distribution conduits on every level. One other thing we should probably get in order is constructing a new ship. You'll need a vessel that operates under a crew rather than the consciousness of one. You have most of the raw materials you would need to construct of functional vessel with an acting crew, but it would mean disassembling your previous ship."

Lore began helping to coordinate the beam downs from the Borg ship. Panic was running rampant and it sounded as though they were rioting over who would be the first to get off the ship. The Borg drone standing next to Hugh flipped open a make-shift communications device from his arm.

"Attention, everyone. _All_ individuals will be leaving the ship and none are in any immediate danger. Please attempt to organize yourselves in a method to expedite this process. The sooner we get everyone off of the ship, the sooner we can begin repairs." He flipped the device closed.

Lore raised his eyebrows, a smirk plastered to his face. "What is your name?"

The Borg drone paused. "My designation was 17 of 25 but… I do not have a _name_."

"You don't have name? Hugh has a name." Lore crossed his arms.

"He seems to be the only one." He paused. "Do you think that I could have a name?" He asked without shame.

Lore thought for a moment. "Crosis."

The Borg nodded, repeating "Crosis. Why?"

"Crosis was a peacekeeper in earth mythology," Lore sighed slightly. "But you need to understand that names have power. They give others power over you but they can also be used as a weapon of influence over others."

"I believe I understand. Hugh's name gave him the power to take down our entire ship." Lore nodded. Indeed, it had.

They brought in several crews from the Borg ship whose initial jobs had been maintenance. As the sun set over the alien landscape, the complex transformed into a construction site. They ripped out old walls in the lower levels where rot had begun to take hold and reinforced them with titanium plating, embedding energy nodes where they were needed. They could have kept an army in this fortress, if necessary.

They began pulling the Borg vessel apart after grounding it, which had rather devastating effects to the exterior. The ship was caved in on one side and half buried in the fresh black dirt of a valley about a kilometer off from the sanctuary. The ship's design was completely modified, giving no hints as to the ship's origins. Much of the material was used to reform the inside of the building but most was used in the construction of their new vessel.

They used the design of his scout ship to draw up a dual warp engine. One that was capable of at least warp 10 and vortex speed as well. The design of the ship war far from pretty; it had combined elements of the Borg ship, built to carry a large number of passengers, but was more compact. The weapons system was extensive. The ship could match any Federation flagship. Lore knew that if these Borg were to come into contact with any of the Federation they would be facing serious issues.

As the construction and development of the complex trudged on, Lore received no word from any of the Lemnan people, neither from Dakkar or Idham. Ilyn had told Lore that she would remain in contact with him, if possible. Subspace carriers were slow, but weeks had passed without event and he was beginning to worry.

Lore had Hugh standing next to him as he lay on his back, underneath a communications panel which he was attempting to repair.

"Hugh… there's," there was a loud clank of metal from under the panel, "something I need to go and take care of shortly. It is very important, do you understand?"

"You… are leaving?"

"I will return." Lore slid out from underneath the panel, wiping his hands on a towel, pausing thoughtfully. "We've almost accomplished our goal here, Hugh, and when we have, I will need your help. The help of your people."

Lore tried several times to send out the same general message to area of the Raan star system, using the native language in all dialects. Doubts nagged in the back of his mind. He received no communications from Ilyn, or anyone, since her last message before they had fled.

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

Lore had returned, only to find abandoned streets. The sand hissed in the wind as he stepped hesitantly over scattered rubble. He shouted, calling out for anyone, but there was no one. They were simply gone, every single person. There were no bodies, there was nothing. The city had been home to at least seven million, including the outskirts but it looked as though the place had been deserted for centuries.

He gazed up at the high ledge allowing the sun to throw spots into his eyes, temporarily rendering him blind. Through the glare, he could almost make out the temple where Jamaal used to worship, its glittering gold panels shining in the sun. Lore felt a distinct sense of abandonment, sinking to his knees. They had left him behind in the dust.

For the first time in his life, Lore contorted around his torso, taking fistfuls of his hair in his hands and he wept. Dakkar was empty and there was a massive sandstorm was moving quickly over the area. He felt a deep sense of longing, that if they _were_ dead, he could be allowed to lye alongside them and never get back up again.

.

Lore gazed into the placid mirror and, for a moment, his brother's condemning, emotionless eyes stared back at him. How was it possible that Data could be so empty while Lore stood by with emotions that twisted in upon themselves? A pale, clenched fist shattered the mirror in a flash, raining silver shards onto the floor. He took in a deep breath, steadying himself.

His brother would join them soon, and he would open Data's eyes to the true nothingness of the universe. The endless cycle of life in vain and death for a resolve. A cycle which would evade the two androids for eternity. Lore smiled. If anyone would understand, it would be Data. Gentle thoughts of hope replaced his anguish. Together they were immortal.

Lore allowed himself the hope that together they might build something meaningful, something that could withstand the abuse of time. He would never forget the times he spent with humans who were so frail and temporary. If only their impact on his memories were as gossamer.

He found that Data did not leave his thoughts, even as he left the star system. He and his brother were both constructed under the same concept. The idea that you could love someone who would never die, and that it would never be forgotten. Lore could not forget. Not his home, not his father, and never his brother.

Lore imagined that he could be the first in a generation of humanoids whose every miniscule memory of every tiny detail in their lives would travel the depths of time. He would create a world of people who would never endure hardships such as sickness or the pain of death.

Lore could seek his brother out and together they would accomplish so much more than they ever could being apart. Lore pulled the glass case from his pack, gazing at its sparkle once more.

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

"We're being contacted from a neighboring planet in the system."

"Really?" Lore did not sound particularly amused.

"Yes sir. They are demanding to that we evacuate this planet. Apparently they consider it their terrain. They have minimal defensive capabilities."

"Do not respond. They don't need to know we are here. Perhaps a dampening field of a sort will deter them."

"And then what?"

"If they persist, we will destroy them." Lore replied plainly.

"That does not seem right." The Borg watched him with uncertainty. Lore searched momentarily for the Borg's name. Goval...

"Doesn't seem _right_? Is it _right_ that they would drive out of your only chance of continued existence simply because it did not comply with _their_ interests?" Lore stepped down from the ledge he was standing on. "If you want to survive in this quadrant of space you will need to be more passionate about what you believe in, more _persuasive_. They would have you all slaughtered simply because you are Borg. You are an enemy of the Federation through no fault of your own. They would exterminate you, like _insects_. You will have to fight them eventually."

"You should all be angry, _livid_. You were left to drift in empty space. I would be furious if I were you." Inside the link, Lore knew how angry they were. Their anger fueled his and vice-versa. They were attacked, many killed. The lives they lead as automatons, misguided and wasteful. They had purpose, now, a direction. And Lore wanted to be the ones to help them find that purpose.

"My friends, my _people_… the time has come for us to take action. Today marks the beginning of a new era for our kind. It marks the end of death and desolation. Today we find out what it truly means to be _alive_." Lore discreetly pulled the tiny glass case from his pocket again, still smirking. It was empty.

* * *

><p>Zzzzzzzzzz. Goodnight, eastern seaboard.<p> 


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

.

_A dim orange light glared down into Jamaal's pale face. Instinctively, she reached up to cover her eyes. The sounds of muffled conversation gently prodded her consciousness and she sat up abruptly, pressing a hand to the back of her head as she fought the urge to vomit. Around her, she found that many of her comrades were scattered on cots, wrapped in gauze and being treated with primitive medical supplies._

Where am I?_She asked herself. The last memory she had was aboard the warship, the chaos of the Gheyya._

_She noticed Commander Eames sitting on a cot next to her, his face pressed deep into his palms._

"_Darren?" She asked hesitantly. _

_He raised his head. "Jim?" Darren Eames was the only man she had ever loved besides Lore. They had grown apart many years before she had even met Lore, but they were still friends. His presence next to her was comforting._

_She paused to let her head settle, feeling utterly displaced. "Where are we? ...I have a headache." she added as an afterthought._

She was kept in one of many prison camps along with thousands of others whom had served alongside her. Many had approached her with questions she could not answer. How far away from home were they? Would they return? She didn't even know what planet they were on. Jamaal thought of the first weeks spent in these holding camps and as her thoughts grew in their strangeness, she slipped into dreams.

.

Jamaal was roused from her sleep as several shouts erupted near her cot. Of few of the teenagers had gotten into a disagreement. Jamaal spotted the silver flash of a knife and swiftly rose from her cot.

Eames had noticed the disturbance as well and grabbed the scrawny attacker from behind as Jamaal calmly wrestled the knife from the struggling child's hand.

Jamaal held the blade out in the light. Upon closer inspection, Jamaal's eyes narrowed slightly. "Where did you find this?" She hissed.

"What is it to _you_?" The boy spat back.

"Insolent child. _Where did you find this?_" She held it menacingly against the boy's chest.

"My father… he was stationed aboard one of the war vessels. Took it from a fallen commanding officer." The boy was obviously struggling for breath. Eames lessened his grip on him.

"Which officer?"

"I don't remember. I swear." He added quickly at the look she gave him. Eames loosened his hold on the boy and he slipped through his arms and disappeared into the crowded cavern.

Eames turned to her as she stared at the elegant symbols etched into the metal. "What is it?"

"It is Commander Ilyn's ceremonial blade. It was given to her when she was indoctrinated into the priesthood. I gave it to her," Jamaal swallowed "I guess it is only fitting that it was returned to me."

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

Lore dressed himself slowly, fingering the thick fibers of the plain, black tactical suit. His head felt slightly off balance, spinning. His circulatory system pumped faster than what could be considered comfortable and he could not shake the feeling that he was being watched.

His emotions had felt unsynchronized and discordant for the past several weeks. Fall had transformed into winter and snow frosted the ground where the trees were barren and black. In the back of his mind, he heard his brother's name whispered over and over. _Data…_

But it was not Data. _He_ was not Data… though the feelings were still there. The sense of betrayal and guilt, love and hatred, blame and fault.

When he slept, he dreamt that he was not himself, but that he was his brother. In these dreams, he felt a horrifying lack of control as he stood holding a knife, a purple tinted blade, to his own throat and watched as watery pitch dribbled down his neck. He would always wake again, trying to shake a sense of lost identity. But he needed that portion of Data within him. Without it, he had come to fear the isolation inside his own mind.

Lore gently placed a hand against the titanium plated walls. His long-empty stomach churned. He felt sick. He _never_ felt sick. He wondered how it was that he could convince himself to crawl out of his cot in the mornings and endure the Borg whom he had grown to hate.

The Borg, being so far out of their element, were unruly, hazardous beings. Fights often broke out for the strangest reasons. Plots against his own head were common, but easily stifled. He was confident that if he could develop the Borg into fully artificial beings, then he could organize a fully functional civilization. The idea sang to him. If Data could see that progress here, then he may integrate the faction into the Federation.

He attempted to continue his father's work. The entirety of research from 's lab was stored in his mind. However, the implants Lore designed were unstable, and usually killed the surrounding areas of the brain. The results were inconclusive. Initially, the Borg blamed him for the deaths of their comrades. And then began the suicides.

The connections implemented between the Borg at birth had held them together for as long as they had ever known; without that sense of continuity, chaos would consume them. Since the destruction of their ship, the Borg had not had access to this link and one at a time, several Borg had fallen victim to stress and depression and had died from lack of energy sustenance. When these began, Lore had reconstructed the network, and required every Borg to remain connected at all times. The events remained isolated, and the Borg allowed Lore to continue his experiments on the grounds that they could prevent further loss among the continuum.

He tasked Crosis with monitoring their progress as well as psychological welfare and the faction had remained under control for a while. Hugh had disappeared after the first Borg deaths, and was not found again. Lore had regretted his absence; he was one of the few Borg who seemed to be able to keep a steady head in a stressful environment, but still it mattered little to him.

Shouts echoed down the hall and Lore swiftly exited his quarters, trying to find the source of the disruption. He found two Borg locked in a furious wrestling match, viciously slashing at one another as a crowd grew surrounding them, jeering at the scene. Lore recognized Crosis as one of the attackers and shoved his way through to pull the two apart. The crowd seized the second offender.

"What's happened here?" Lore asked angrily.

"Two Borg have disconnected their link from the others. I questioned them and was attacked." Crosis hissed, indicating to the Borg struggling against his captors.

Lore turned an icy stare on him.

"You're evil!" spat the younger drone, still fighting.

"You don't know the meaning of the word."

* * *

><p>.<p>

"_The stressed reaction when confronted with unknown life has not been sufficiently documented and cannot be predicted in advance. Within these people, the most likely result of contact would be… absolute terror."_The recording of a professor at the Daystrom Institute played through his mind as the sedated Borg lying beneath him on a stark metal table breathed gentle, shallow breaths. Lore operated with vulcan-like detachment, inserting modified cybernetic filaments into the Borg's cerebral cortex. The lecture he analyzed had been on the mildly xenophobic nature of the human species before proper conditioning and how echoes of these tendencies still existed in their race.

The Borg's condition had not improved since the last operation. The life-support monitors indicated a significant drop in brain activity. Lore felt something inside of himself slip a little bit lower, filling his body with an insatiable emptiness. He had sincerely hoped that this operation would be successful. The damage was irreversible. He closed the open lacerations, and washed his hands for what would be the fifth time in the past hour. He then had the vegetative body removed to stasis for use in further testing.

He left his laboratory, pacing down the darkened hall, eager to find his way outside. The rumble of the power conditioner deep underneath the complex reached his sensitive ears and his black polished booted clapped under the marble floor. He froze as a clatter erupted behind him for a fraction of a second. Eyes wide, he turned and found himself alone, the hallway empty. A shiver ran up his spine and he was left feeling vulnerable in his skin. The sensation looming over his shoulder would not leave him, and no matter how many times Lore reminded himself that he was in control of his own mind, he was still there.

_"Data…"_

* * *

><p>Comments and criticisms are always welcome.<p> 


	12. Chapter 11 - Part I

Chapter 11

Part I

"We've reached the outpost you requested, sir." Crosis spoke quietly to Lore, whose shoulder was turned to him.

In the event of external war involving foreign nations, the Federation cannot intervene; they have a strict policy of political detachment. But the Federation could never ignore an attack on their own territory. Lore smirked.

They began beaming aboard the station in groups of ten. "Kill everyone." He spoke the words in a flash of satisfying anger. The drones did not question him, only robotically following orders. They were armed with heavy black plasma weapons which had been attached to their mechanical appendages. It was a ruthless kind of weapon, Ferengi in design, and killed its victims slowly.

The few security personnel posted on the station were the first to resist and were the first to be annihilated. Many of the younger female officers screamed in horror at the sight of the Borg raging through the station. The smell of burned flesh reeked in the air. Lore paced gracefully around the chaos as the screams faded into white noise and his focus hazed out. He heard nothing and felt nothing, standing by idly as his victims were executed.

A drone at communications spoke. "The outpost was able to send out a distress signal before we could raise the dampening field."

Lore smirked. "Good."

"I wouldn't be surprised if a Federation ship were to arrive shortly."

Lore turned towards him. "I'm counting on it."

The sensors on their ship picked up a galaxy class starship dropping out of warp in the sector. Lore returned from the station in a weak effort to conceal his identity.

"Sir! They are hailing us." Lore shook his head, suppressing his amusement for the moment.

"The Starfleet officers are beaming onto the station… We have an incoming communication from the team."

"Biological life form… human… Biological life form… klingon." Lore's smirk widened. "Artificial life form. Starfleet rank, lieutenant commander; name, Data."

"That's him." Lore whispered under his breath, and then addressed the crew. "Alright, beam the remaining team members aboard."

The ship disengaged its weapons system and opened a rip in space, hurtling through in a blink of light.

Within less than an hour, Lore had taken down the entire outpost with a small team of conditioned Borg. Lore imagined what more he could accomplish with a mere thousand individuals. He ran his thumb over the arm of his chair, his jaw ticking. His head was light and the taste of power was bitter and metallic in his mouth. It felt euphoric to be in control. He could only think about the next time he would flex this new-found authority.

* * *

><p>"Red alert! All hands battle stations!" Riker's crystal clear voice rang throughout the ship's comm system in a flood and red warning lights flashed on all decks.<p>

On the bridge, Data found that they were closing on the Borg ship attacking a second outpost. Data did not feel anxiety or fear but he could feel a sense of apprehension as he admired the ship. It was somewhat cubic in nature but was asymmetrical in appearance. An interestingly ironic design for the uniform nature of the Borg continuum.

"Sensors are detecting a subspace distortion forming directly ahead of the Borg ship."

"Mr. LaForge! Forward all emergency power and shields to the impulse engines!" Picard took a deep breath. "They're not going to get away this time."

"Impulse engines operating at 125%. Within phaser range in 10 seconds."

The Borg ship vanished into a clip of light.

"Sir, we appear to be caught in some kind of energy matrix." Data's eyes flashed in superhuman speed over the view panel. "Inertial dampeners failing."

"Shields failing."

"We are being pulled inside." The Enterprise shuddered violently and the intense light which had encased the Borg ship yawned, enveloping the Enterprise as well.

Data counted five… ten… fifteen seconds before the vortex winked out into blackness. "We have returned to normal space."

"Shields are down to 15% The Borg ship is coming about." Worf stressed from his station.

"On screen." Picard stood from his chair, straightening his uniform as he did. Simultaneously, the Borg vessel fired a photon torpedo just as two Borg drones beamed directly aboard the bridge.

The security officer reacted immediately firing off a shot and missing the Borg by inches. In two swift moves, Worf took down the second drone, and the drone which had initially attacked, rendering them both unconscious.

He then checked his sensors. "The Borg ship is gone."

* * *

><p>Crosis stared up at the ceiling of his holding cell. He was on the Enterprise, the flagship where Lore's brother was commissioned as an officer. Lore had spoken of recruiting Data into their revolution. He could only assume that this was why he had been beamed aboard in the first place.<p>

Crosis watched in interest as the door hissed open and Lore's identical brother stepped into detainment, wearing a Starfleet uniform of a higher rank. Ambition obviously ran through the family. Data was running tricorder scans, ignoring the Borg captive completely.

Crosis stood from his cot, speaking to Data. "You are not like the others. You do not have to be destroyed. You can be assimilated."

"I do not wish to be assimilated."

"Resistance is futile. You will not resist what you have wanted all your life…

I was like you once...without feeling. But the One helped me. He can help you too, help you find emotion. Have you ever felt emotion Data?"

Data's eyebrows knitted together. "Yes." He almost sounded ashamed. "…On Ohniaka III I was forced to kill a Borg. I got angry."

"How did it feel to get angry? Did you find pleasure in the experience?"

"It would be unethical to take pleasure in another being's death."

"You didn't answer my question. Did it feel good to kill?"

Data turned, chewing on the inside of his cheek. "Yes."

"If it is so unethical to take pleasure in another being's death, then you must be a _very_ unethical person."

"No. That is not correct. My creator gave me a program which defines my sense of right and wrong. In essence, I have a conscience."

"Well. It didn't seem to be functioning on Ohniaka III."

"Please step away from the force field." Data's voice trembled.

"You must have enjoyed it… watching the life drain from your victim."

"It was a very… potent experience." He barely whispered.

"Would you like to feel that way again?"

Data felt a sharp stab of longing and pushed aside any feelings of guilt still nagging deep in his mind. "I… Yes."


	13. Chapter 11 - Part II

Descent Parts I & II written by René Echevarria (Part II) Ronald D. Moore (Part I) and Jeri Taylor are © of Paramount Pictures.

* * *

><p>Chapter 11<p>

Part II

Data stood, pacing on the black marble floors next to Crosis whose systems gave off a faint pulsing hum.

"Who is 'the One'?" he asked quietly, hesitant to make any sound above a whisper.

"You will find out soon enough." It was strange; a sensation was growing in his chest. He wanted to say it was apprehension, but it spiraled into something more. He was fearful.

"Data." He turned to find his identical counterpart watching him.

"Lore."

Lore's face cracked into a smile, clearing the space between them in a few long strides but Data could only watch, completely stunned.

"My brother."

"But where… how have you come to-?" Data broke off and Lore's grin widened, he could not help it. His brother's confusion was simply too amusing.

"It's… a bit of a long story."

Data turned sharply, completely reanalyzing his settings. Borg weaving in and out of the open hallway, occasionally conversing with one another. "Is this what you have been doing, Lore?"

Lore followed Data's gaze around the room. "More or less." Lore took another step closer to his brother, discreetly activating his emotion chip and placing a hand on his Data's shoulder. He recognized it as a familiar gesture and he felt a surge of emotion but when he looked into his Lore's eyes, he felt nothing.

"I've missed you, Brother." Data only nodded in response. "Tell me, Data, how are you feeling?"

"I am not." Lore eyed him stonily but then his mouth twisted into a smile.

"We're going to change that. Walk with me..." They continued in silence until, outside, the buzzing of insects filled their ears with a slow overture.

"Data, I understand that it's been a long time since we've met. But I had hoped that with this encounter you and I will come to have a better understanding of each other." Lore paused momentarily. "I kept the gift our father made for you, and I intend to return it. You wish to feel emotion, Data?"

"Yes." Desperation plain on his face.

"I want you to understand that there is more to this emotion chip than just _feelings_. It will establish a stronger connection between you and I... It will bring everything around you to life." He paused and continued gravely. "But not all of it is joy, Data, some of these emotions will be distasteful. You will have to learn to cope with them as well."

"I will."

"Good." Lore smiled wickedly. "I am sorry it has taken me this long to seek you out. But… I don't believe I am entirely to blame. Those humans you spend your time with… do you realize what they mean?"

Data shook his head returning Lore's steady gaze with a puzzled expression. "They represent friendship, do they not?"

"…No. They don't… Always keeping you at arm's length, Data? I don't think so. No, you're more like… a pet, or a prisoner. A _valued_ prisoner perhaps… but a prisoner, no less."

Data dropped his gaze to feet. "I… I do not think so."

"Really? Are you _sure_?" Lore took a menacing step closer to his brother. "Think about it, Data. How many times has Starfleet second guessed your abilities because you're an android? How many times have you been treated differently because of it? If I remember correctly you were put on trial just to defend your rights as a _sentient being_…"

"I did _win_ that trial." Data noted.

"Yes but it seems redundant that you had to go through it in the first place." Lore increased the intensity of the emotion chip, and grasped his brother by the shoulders, looking him in his golden eyes with a softened expression.

"I would never treat you that way, Data. We're family. I know I have made mistakes in the past and they still haunt me. But it is my wish to change. Stand by my side, Data… and we will create a world worth living in."

.

* * *

><p>"Our currently theory, is that the Borg have established several transwarp conduits through subspace. The ship when entering the conduit is immediately accelerated into an extremely high warp velocity. It's like falling into a fast moving river and being swept away by the current." Geordi LaForge bent over the navigation system station on the bridge, giving his scarce report to the Captain.<p>

"How fast will a ship travel through one of these conduits?"

"Normal subspace limitations don't apply to transwarp variables… but I would say based on the distance we covered during our trip through the conduit the speed would have to be at least twenty times our maximum warp output."

"How do they open the conduits?

"The Borg ship emitted some kind of high energy tachyon pulse just before we saw the subspace distortion. It seems as though the conduits are keyed to respond to tachyon emissions of a specific frequency."

"Sir, long range sensors are picking up the shuttle's energy signature to this point on the surface. But there's too much interference to scan for the exact location."

"Are they intentionally jamming our sensors?"

Geordi shook his head. "It looks more like a natural phenomenon. Unusually high amounts of EM interference on the planet's magnetosphere.

"Can we transport through the interference?"

"We could… but there could be fifty Borg down there waiting for us and we would never even know it."

"We may have to take the risk."

"Agreed. Take a well armed away team down to the surface and have Mr. O'Brian keep a lock on you at all times so we can pull you out of there at the first sign of trouble."

"Aye, sir."

"Commander LaForge, all available personal including you and I will begin to put together four man away teams. I'll leave a skeleton crew aboard the ship."

"Who will be in command of the Enterprise?"

Captain Picard thought for a moment then tapped his comm badge. "Dr. Crusher, please report to the bridge." Beverly Crusher's fitted blue uniform complemented her stunning strawberry hair, but the most notable of her features, were her eyes. They graced her high cheekbones, giving her a natural appearance of nobility.

"Yes, Captain?"

"I'm leaving you in charge of the Enterprise while we send out search parties on the planet."

"If the Borg should attack, don't wait for me or anyone else to return to the ship, but take the Enterprise back through the warp conduit and return to Federation space."

"Got it." She whispered gravely. "Good luck, Jean-Luc." And with that, she gave him her signature melancholy smile.

.

* * *

><p>"Sir we're picking up a Federation class vessel dropping out of high warp in the system."<p>

"Raise the dampening field." Lore watched, emotionless as they carried out his commands.

"Brother." He called for Data who was already there, standing behind him watching with curiosity. "Are you ready? Do you think you can handle seeing your friends again?" Lore significantly decreased the feedback that Data would receive from his emotion chip.

"I am."

Lore nodded. "Good." Lore stood from the chair he was lounging in. "They have begun to beam down in teams. I expect they should be here within the next few hours. Come with me. There are a few last minute modifications I would like to make before they arrive."

Lore descended down into the lower levels of the complex where his own personal cybernetics lab was waiting. Data followed him in, looking around him apprehensively.

"What kind of modifications are you planning, Lore?"

"Nothing that will harm you. I wish to integrate a receiver into your brain which will react more efficiently with your neural net. I've been feeding you emotions remotely from your own emotion chip."

Data nodded, he understood his reaction at the Ohniaka III outpost. He had not been able to explain the emotion, nor the absence of emotion which followed.

"But could you not simply remove the emotion chip and implant it into my brain?" Lore had seen this question coming and already had a response prepared.

"Your emotion chip has been within me for so long that it has become a part of my systems. To remove it could be detrimental to my own brain. It is possible that my own positronic matrix would be compromised." He lied through his teeth, giving his brother a small smile. "But I have found a solution."

To give his brother access to his emotion chip would give him full control over all emotions. If he allowed this to happen there was a distinct chance his brother would turn from him and return to his colleagues. Not only did he find this risk too great but Lore was also sentimental about the chip; it had been his only link to his brother for years.

Implanting the receiver was exceedingly simple and once his ethical sub-programming was overwritten, the flow of emotions took complete control over Data as he was practically child-like in the area of self-discipline.

Lore watched, fascinated, as his brother's fists clenched slightly along with his jaw. Data smiled a sickening smile which Lore returned.

.

* * *

><p>Picard sat down against a steep rise with a huff. The heat came up from the ground in warm waves, giving the fields a shimmering effect and the tall green grass that mixed with the amber reeds was alive with a symphony of buzzing insects. It almost reminded him of the summers at his home in southern France.<p>

"Anything Mr. LaForge?"

"Well… no, nothing sir."

'What if we modified the phasers to send out a lometric pulse? It might create a resonance fluxuation in Data's power cells."

"Yeah… I thought about that. The only problem is that the pulse would have to be so powerful it would probably overload his positronic net in the process."

"Captain," Deanna Troi interrupted their brainstorm. "I think I've found something."

Above the ridge where they were resting, a tall, white building rose impressively against the pearly clouds.

The inside of the fortress was embellished in black marble, tapestries, titanium paneling... It had a spartan, war-like front. Picard observed with fascination the savage hangings of black marks slashed down blood-red fabric. Their shoes clapped against the marble floors.

"This seems to be some kind of meeting place."

"Sir I… I'm having a difficult time scanning the interior."

The captain sighed. "Can you tell if it was built by the Borg?"

"I don't think so… there's no Borg energy signatures. But there is a door or hatch about twenty meters this way."

"It certainly hasn't been abandoned."

"Something's wrong." The tone of Geordi's voice put Picard on edge. "I can't get any kind of energy signatures from these lights sources.

"It's a dampened field. This entire structure could be shielded from our sensors. Let's go." Picard ordered urgently, but before they were given the chance to escape, Borg drones began to pour into the complex. Shouts echoed off the walls and Picard and his team were jostled into a tight circle.

"Stop!" The face of Dr. Noonian Soong's creation stood on a platform, his body covered in traditional Borg clothing.

"Data?"

"That's not Data." Deanna's voice was anxious, reserved. Picard did a double take on the android.

"…Lore."


	14. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

.

"What do you think of my followers, Picard? Impressive, are they not?" Lore sauntered down from the high-rise, his footsteps heavy in lofty arrogance.

"I'm not particularly _impressed_." Picard spat the last word with distaste. "What you have done is teach these Borg to take joy in killing."

"You are wrong, Captain." Data spoke up again to defend Lore. "My brother and I serve a much higher purpose."

"_Data_," Deanna Troi stepped forward, shock evident on her face. "I can sense feelings in you."

"Yes. My brother has made that possible." He hissed at her in petulance.

"He gave you the emotion chip… the one Dr. Soong made for you?" Picard questioned. Was it possible that this was the source of Data's new disturbing behavior?

Lore scoffed at him. "No. I still have the emotion chip my father designed. I would not want to give it up. It's what has given me such a strong sense of family. An intense desire to reunite with my brother." His words softened slightly and he turned to observe Data's reaction. The twisted smirk he found on Data's face greatly amused him.

"What made you do it, Data? What made you decide to come here?"

"_I_ am speaking to you, Picard. I will tell you all you need to know."

"You're controlling him. And you've corrupted the Borg." The words came as a slap of truth and Lore had to work to control his anger.

He smirked, masking his irritation. "You simply don't understand, do you? You have no idea what has happened here. How I've found my true calling. How the Borg found something to believe in."

"I would like to learn about that," Picard turned. "But I want Data to tell me."

Lore took a warning step towards the Captain. "I've already told you. I will tell you everything you need to know."

"How about that, Data? He won't even let you _speak_."

Data replied softly, reproachfully. "Do not try to drive a wedge between us, Captain. I am loyal to my brother."

"You see Picard? He's not your pawn anymore. I've helped him to break free. Just as I've helped them. _Look_ at them. Look at what they've become. They're _alive_."

"Are you saying that _you_ caused them to become individuals?" Troi asked him skeptically.

"No. You did that. You and your friends. All I did was clean up the mess you made when that Borg you befriended returned to his ship."

"Hugh interfaced with the others and transferred his sense of individuality to them. It nearly destroyed them."

"You see… without me they would have perished. When I stumbled upon their ship they were lost, disoriented. They had no idea how to function as individuals; they couldn't even navigate their own vessel! They had lost their sense of purpose. I gave them their purpose… and they gave me mine."

"The Borg aspire to the perfection my brother and I represent. Fully artificial life forms. We are their future."

"The reign of biological life forms is coming to an end. You, Picard, and those like you, are obsolete."

Lore nodded to the Borg and Data escorted the away team from the entrance hall.

.

.

Data followed his fellow crew members into the holding cell where they were to be kept.

"Data you must realize that something has happened to you. The Data _I_ knew would never have played a willing part into Lore's plans."

"I now realize that my life aboard the Enterprise was a waste." He snatched the commbadge from counselor Troi's uniform. "My quest to become human, misguided… An evolutionary step in the wrong direction."

"Data all I'm sensing from you is anger and hatred. Have you experienced any other emotions?" Deanna eyed him warily.

"There are no other emotions." He replied flatly.

Geordi's eyebrows knitted together. "Data… just because you haven't experienced certain emotions doesn't mean they don't exist. Lore is just feeding you the negative ones."

"Counselor Troi herself told me that feelings are neither positive nor negative. It is how we act on them that make them good or bad."

"Fine." Picard gave him a hard look. "What about the things Lore is proposing? What about the lives that have already been lost?"

Doubt flickered through Data for an instant and he responded with a rehearsed reply. "You simply do not understand." His voice was robotic. "In a quest such as ours, sacrifices must be made. It is regrettable, but the greater good must be served."

He nodded to Geordi. "Give me your visor."

"Why?"

Data snatched a phaser from one of the Borg. "If you do not cooperate then I will take it by force." Geordi sighed, removing the seeing device and handing it over hesitantly.

Data snatched it from his hand and stepped out of the cell.

"I am not your _puppet_ anymore."

.

Out in the hall, Data nearly shoved the Borg sentries from him, his footsteps falling fast and heavy on the floors. His hand clenched around the visor, nearly snapping it into two.

"There you are, brother!"

"Here is the visor you asked for. May I ask why you wanted it?" Data stood watching his brother with apprehension.

Lore shook his head. "I thought it might look good on me." He smirked and Data responded with an awkward silence. Lore's grin slurred into a grimace of content.

"Perhaps we should work on your sense of humor, brother…." He sobered. "Actually, I was thinking LaForge's implant might make him an ideal test subject for my experiment."

"All of the Borg you have _experimented_ on so far have suffered extensive brain damage." Data had scanned though the reports of his last trial runs and now Lore suspected he was fearful for his former friend.

"Using the humans to perfect the procedure with prevent any _further_ Borg deaths."

Data stared at him incredulously. Lore actually planned on killing the humans. Something flared inside him and the words spilled out of his mouth with a small, twisted smile. "I understand."

Crosis charged into the hall, dragging a fellow Borg along with him by the arm.

Lore glanced back and forth between them, his eyes narrowed, analyzing the commotion. "What it is?"

"This Borg has disconnected himself from the others. He would not let me hear his thoughts." He explained.

Lore sighed slowly. "I've asked you to stay linked to Crosis at all times. You know that don't you?"

"Yes."

"I know this must be difficult for you. How uncertain you must feel. All of these sensations are new. They can be frightening."

"Yes…. I have doubts."

"Of course you do! It's only natural. No one can blame you for that. But in order to shed those doubts, to keep fear and confusion away, I need you to remain linked to the others… so that their strength and their confidence can help you. I need you, Goval. I need your help to build a future for the Borg. I can't do it without you."

The speech was less for the benefit of the borg drones and more for Data. Lore turned to wink at his brother.

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

In the afternoons, the planet-side heat was an unstoppable force, willing its victims to submit under its heavy weight. Lieutenant Worf wiped his brow with his sleeve, glancing at his tricorder in between the endless entanglement with the underbrush. Commander Riker was a few strides ahead of him, taking on the task of clearing a path.

"Still no sign of the structure."

"All this interference, it could be a hundred meters away and we still wouldn't know it…. This could take hours."

"Wait… I'm picking up a faint energy reading. Thermal energy… it could be human. They took this path." Worf trudged after his commanding officer, new hope flaring in his legs.

A few meters along the path, they spotted several Borg traveling in a group, ignorant of their position.

"Commander!" Worf whispered, motioning for Riker to follow a parallel path. From thin air, another group of Borg surrounded them, the threat attack looming with their weapons.

"Starfleet officers. Come with us." Riker look to Worf, bewildered.

They followed the group for about a kilometer as they trudged their way out of the woodland until the complex became visible on the east horizon. They were led into an underground cavern deep inside a matrix of tunnels. They passed a variety of Borg who turned to stare at them as they passed, a few even stepping out of the way.

"You..? What are you doing here?" Riker stared in awe the drone.

Hugh. Their Borg friend they had only known for a short period of time and never expected to see again. It was presumed that the collective would erase his memory and his sense of individuality, rendering him another lifeless Borg drone. And here he was, remembering them by name.

"_Why are you here Commander Riker?_" Hugh hissed, angrily. He had deep shadows under his eyes. Riker wondered if he had gotten any sleep, or if that was even possible in his current state. "Hasn't the crew of the Enterprise done enough damage already?"

"You blame _us_ for what has happened to you?" Worf's nostrils flared in indignation.

"_You_ were the ones who gave me a sense of individuality. _You_ changed me and then sent me back to the collective. You must have known that change would be passed along to others."

"We knew it was a possibility."

"Then you have made it possible for Lore to dominate us."

"I cannot accept that. You are many, Lore is one. You could have stopped him."

"You don't understand the condition we were in when he found us. Before my experience on the Enterprise, the Borg were a single minded collective. Our thoughts were smooth and flowing, but after I returned, they began to change. They became uneven… discordant. For the first time, individuals had different idea about how to proceed. We couldn't function! Some fought… others shut themselves down, many starved to death!"

"And then _Lore_ came along?" Riker asked with heavy skepticism.

"You cannot imagine what it is like to be so lost that you will listen to _any_ voice that promises change–"

"Even if that voice _insists_ on controlling you."

"That's what we wanted. Someone to show us the way out of confusion. Lore promised clarity and purpose. He seemed like a savior, with the promise of becoming a superior race. The idea of becoming fully artificial was compelling, we did everything he asked. After a while it became clear that Lore had no idea how to keep his promise. That's when he began to talk about the need for sacrifice. Before we realized it… this was the result."

Hugh loomed over several Borg, many of whom were motionless; other's mechanical appendages were twitching uncontrollable. Riker and Worf stared down at the morbid scene, one of the Borg tried reaching its hand up to try and grab at Worf uniform.

"This is the result of my experiences with the Enterprise. So you can see why I don't particularly welcome you presence here…" Hugh paused thoughtfully for a moment. "Tell me about my friend… Geordi."

Riker paused with a huff. "I wish I could. We think he may be held inside the compound."

"I cannot help you… I cannot risk our being discovered."

"Can you show us a way into the compound?" Riker asked gently.

The younger Borg nodded. "These caverns lead to tunnels which run beneath the compound."

"If you show us the layout of the complex, we may be able to perform a rescue mission."

Hugh nodded slowly, motioning for them to follow.

.

.

"I don't understand. Why could Data take your visor?"

Geordi sighed. "Lore must have realized I could see a carrier wave that was radiating from him."

"Carrier wave? Is that how he's manipulating Data?"

"I think Lore had found a way to tap into the emotion chip from Dr. Soong and somehow he's using it to transmit part of that emotional program to Data."

Counselor Troi shook her head. "But the only emotions Data seems to feel are negative."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's intentional. But in order for Data to be affected by those emotions Lore would have had to disable Data's ethical program first."

"Is there a way we can reactivate it?"

"Maybe. If I can generate a phased cadion pulse at just the right frequency that would triggers Data's subsystems to reboot the program."

"And though Lore would still be feeding him negative emotion, at least Data might _listen_ to us."

The force field vanished and Data stepped through avoiding eye contact with his former friends. He placed his hand under Geordi's arm, pulling him to his feet.

"Data," Picard's voice was urgent. "Where are you taking him?"

"That is not your concern." Geordi was guided from the cell.

"Wait! Let us talk to you!" Data's hand flashed out to the security panel and the force field was reestablished, leaving the two of them in silence.

.

Data led Geordi to the same lab where Lore had once worked with his programming. Geordi was secured onto a cold aluminum rack and monitors were attached to his arms and temple. Data could hear his heart beating, as he left the room. He tried to imagine what it was like for Geordi to be in this position. Operating on his former friend made him extremely uncomfortable, but Lore had ordered it. He pushed his doubts aside, remembering the comment Lore had made about his lack of humor.

"Geordi." Picard's voice resounded from his vocal cords.

"Captain!" He heard boots falling heavy on the floor, growing nearer.

"We're getting out of here."

"Hurry, Data was just here… I think he went to get something."

"Oops. Too late." Data tried smiling, but he found none of the situation amusing. "My brother suggested I work on my sense of humor. What do you think?"

Geordi groaned. "I think it needs a little work." Data paused to consider his remark. He shrugged it off after a moment, picking up a tool from the metal stand.

"What's that?"

"I am attempting to neutralize your pain receptors."

"What are you going to do to me?"

"I am implanting nano-cortical fibers into your cerebrum. They are designed to learn your neural firing patterns. Once they are in place I will destroy the existing brain cells. We will see if the artificial neural net will be able to support your cognitive functions."

Geordi shook his head, panicking. "Data. Listen to me. Lore is controlling you. He's transmitting a carrier wave which is affecting your positronic matrix."

Data ignored him. "If the procedure is successful, your cognitive functions will be considerably improved."

"You don't care that he's _manipulating_ you?"

"However, there is a sixty-percent chance you will not survive the procedure."

"…I don't much care for those odds."

"They are a cause for concern. However I still have Counselor Troi and Captain Picard. Odds are one of the procedures will be successful."

When Data finally returned Geordi to his cell, he found he could not keep his hands from shaking. Fuming, he left the three of them huddled together and went to search for his brother.

.

Data found his brother reading from a monitor at from at his work station, completely unaware of his presence.

"Lore." He spoke quietly, darkly. Lore held up one finger for him to be patient.

In a flash of rage, Data unbolted the desk from the floor, sending metal scraps flying with a screech and a resounding crash. Lore sat back patiently in his chair, one eyebrow raised at his brother.

"What's the problem?"

"I- I cannot stand this." he hissed. "_Them_, _this_…" Lore watched him with an even expression as he stopped pacing, placing his hands on his hips for a moment.

A Borg stepped into the room hesitantly. "Is everything alright in here, sir?"

"Get out." Data nearly shouted. The Borg did not move an inch.

"We're fine. Please leave us." Lore responded patiently, ignoring his brother's tantrum.

The Borg retreated and Data let out a long sigh, his angry mask falling into an empty stare.

"What's troubling you, Data?"

"I spoke with them today. Geordi says that you are controlling me… that the transmission of emotions is adversely affecting my positronic matrix."

Lore stood, leaning towards Data in a show of intimidation. "I asked you _not_ to speak with the humans. _What did I say?_" He shouted the last sentence. "They will feed you lies again and again if they are threatened. I told you they would try to manipulate you, didn't I? And that's what they've begun to do."

"I will not let it happen again, I swear."

Lore nodded, taking an equally long breath. "Data if you do not _trust_ me… if you cannot follow orders… then you will have no place among what we've built here. Let that stand as your warning."

Data stood staring at him for a moment, his jaw ticking, before fleeing the room with Lore's eyes following after him as he did.


	15. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

.

.

"You know, Data, I've been thinking about some of the times we've had together. Like that time we went sailing on Nevala Lake, you remember that?" Geordi grinned, a sheen a sweat covering his face.

"I have a complete memory record of that day." Data responded coldly.

Geordi began laughing. "You decided to go swimming… and when you jumped out of the boat you sank straight to the bottom."

"I did not have enough buoyancy to get back to the surface." He responded defensively.

"You had to walk over a kilometer along the bottom to get back to shore."

"One kilometer, forty-six meters."

"It took almost two weeks to get the water out of your servos."

"…I am ready to eradicate your existing brain cells."

"Data… if you ever go back to way you were, you wouldn't be able to forgive yourself for what you're about to do."

There was a long pause as Data searched himself. "I– I am getting anomalous readings from your neural net. I will need to do further testing before we proceed. Someone will come and take you back to your cell."

.

Data fled the laboratory, frantically searching for his brother. He found Lore outside, observing the activity on the balcony.

"Brother!" Lore turned in greeting. "Have you made any progress with LaForge?"

"It is too early to tell if the nano-cortical fibers have performed their function."

"I suspect none of the humans will survive the process but then… it is their own fault for coming here isn't it?"

"They came looking for me."

Lore scoffed at his brother condescendingly. "Humans are so sentimental."

"I betrayed them. If they die, I am responsible."

Lore turned, watching him suspiciously. "Are you feeling alright? Is something wrong with your programming? Maybe I should check through your systems."

"I do not need you to check my systems. I must resolve these issues myself."

"Do you think I made a mistake? I don't believe you can tolerate the amount of emotion I am granting you. Perhaps I should cut back."

He decreased the carrier wave rate, and in turn felt Data's systems protest. Lore gritted his teeth. This was necessary conditioning and though it hurt the two of them both. Data would thank him for it later.

"Better?" Lore with distaste.

Data shook his head fervently. "I do not like it."

"Then you believe you can cope with more emotions?"

"Yes." Data took a step forward, taking his brother by the arm. It hurt, and yet it did not hurt enough. Lore nodded, returning the transmitter to its previous setting.

"For now then…" Data swallowed, releasing his grip on Lore's shoulder.

"Are you going to thank me?"

Data glared at him in disgust. "_Thank_ you."

Lore watched as Data retreated back into the compound, the buzz of insects filling his ears. His eyebrows knitted together, emotions eternally warped. "I am concerned for my brother, Crosis. I do not believe he truly wants to be a part of our great future."

.

.

"Sir. We just lost contact with our ship. They were in orbit around the star, pursing the Enterprise. The ship was destroyed in a solar flare." Crosis stood with a group of agitated drones, all of which were murmuring and whispering amongst themselves.

Lore ran his hand through his hair, the index finger of his left hand tapping the edge of his desk. He was running out of options. "Find my brother, send him to me."

Lore turned to mutter quietly Crosis. "If we can gain control of the Enterprise we may have a chance of avoiding further interference from the Federation. But first we must remove Picard from the equation."

"You plan on killing the Starfleet Captain?"

"No. One of his own will do it for me."

"Brother, you sent for me." Lore silenced himself, turning as Data entered the corridor. "Geordi is scheduled for the final stage of his procedure this afternoon."

Lore did not to tell him about the destruction of their vessel; it was possible that Data would realize he was planning an invasion of the Enterprise and Lore did not wish for any interference from him again.

"I am not worried about the progress you've made with LaForge. I just wanted to inform you to bring Picard to the Meeting Hall this evening. We have a few things to discuss."

.

.

Data gently lowered Geordi back into his cell, carefully avoiding eye contact with his fellow officers. Picard raised his head, inspecting the condition of his chief engineer.

"You're killing him... He won't survive another procedure."

"I did not come for him. I came for you." Data raised his phaser and the captain followed without question.

"Data, it's not too late. If you remove the fibers, he might recover."

"That would not be possible."

"Why? Because Lore tells you so?"

"It is for the greater good."

"Good? Data, aren't good and bad… right and wrong part of your ethical program?"

"That is correct."

"What does that program tell you about what is happening here? About what you and Lore are doing to the Borg? It tells you that these things are wrong. Doesn't it, Data? How can things that are wrong lead to a greater good?"

"You… are attempting to confuse me."

"No, Data, you're not confused. You're sensing the truth. Your ethical program is fighting the negative emotions that Lore is feeding you."

"_Captain_. Thank you _so_ much for joining us." Data and Picard turned as Lore's voice resonated from the entrance of the Hall. "You are going to assist me in a most important ceremony."

He turned to face Data with a stony expression. "It is time to put aside all doubts, brother. To close the door on the past, and commit yourself to the future that lies ahead of us. I need to know I can count on you. As proof… you will kill Picard."

Picard merely stared back at him impassively as he raised his phaser without a pause. For several long moments Data considered hard evidence and the plain facts. The more time he spent with Lore, the more he found himself doubting his intentions…

"…No. That would be wrong."

Lore whispered a word to Crosis, shaking his head. "I knew you couldn't do it. You've spent too many years among humans."

"Hold him!" Crosis cried. Data was seized by the surrounding borg.

"I have asked many sacrifices of you!" He addressed the room as a whole. "Sacrifices I knew were necessary. In order to build a better future. I want you to know that I ask known more than what I am willing to give myself. I am willing to make the greatest sacrifice of all. My own dear brother."

Lore turned to meet Data's eye. He knew, this was the end for both of them. Even if Lore survived, he was incomplete without his counterpart in the universe. In the end, his self-destruction may have been worth something, but they would have to rejoice without him.

"This is goodbye, Data."

All at once, a commotion exploded in the spacious hall, deafening shouts piercing Lore's ears. His phaser was knocked from his hand. In less than a second, he scanned the room and recognized Hugh, whom had seemed to materialize from thin air, along with countless Borg who were presumed dead or missing.

He began to panic and in the chaos, he fled. His hands shook slightly as he sprinted down the hall. He knew that Data would follow and had hoped that here, there would be one last hope for he and his brother. Lore's face contorted in agony. His system began rejecting his feelings of remorse which twisted into anger and frustration.

His ship lay dormant in a small shuttle bay in the east wing of the annex. If he made it off this planet, they could survive. Lore swiftly began punching in access codes and began a departure sequence. The doors behind him hissed open and he went cold.

Data stood in the doorway, phaser in a slack hand with his face placid and cast loose of emotion. Lore was almost afraid. His brother, whom he had both saved and tried to murder, gazed at him indifferently.

"You should be careful with that, Brother. Someone could get hurt." Lore continued punching in codes.

"I'm willing to forget your lapse of judgment back there, and take you with me. We don't need anyone else. We're _brothers_." His thoughts were clear. He wanted Data with him. But it was obvious he would not come willingly, Lore would have to take him by force. His brother's life in the Federation was over. He could not help but picture Data standing alone in a court martial, being sentenced to be stripped down and disassembled. At least he would be allowed to live under his brother's care… Data would come to forgive him in their solitude.

"I will give you the emotion chip our father designed for you. It contains more than just simple feelings… it has _memories_." Lore touched his finger tip, adjusting the output levels on the makeshift transmitter node. Data gasped, and Lore lunged for his weapon. He felt his body seize up in a powerful phaser blast. His body slumped over the chair, motionless. His consciousness faltered and slowed in a curve. Data's footsteps approached, too slow to be real. He knew what Data would say before the words escaped his lips.

"I must deactivate you now, Lore." He felt Data's hands, warm and gentle on his skull.

"Without me, you will never feel emotion again." He knew without a doubt that Data would have been equally incomplete without him

Data nodded. "I know. But you leave me no other choice."

Paralyzed, Lore's systems began to slow, many shutting down entirely. But there was something else; he found it difficult to form the words. "I love you, brother."

The seconds ticked by, and then there was only blackness.

"Goodbye, Lore."

.

* * *

><p>.<p>

Data sat alone holding the emotion chip in a pair of forceps and observed its sheer golden color. It had caused him a great amount of grief and yet it was the next step in Data's quest to be human. Its symbol proved much a dilemma and Data did not know what he wanted to do with it; he knew that it must be destroyed and he could not bring himself to do so. The door chirped.

"Enter."

Geordi peeked in, smiling grimly. "Hi, Data. I just wanted to let you know Dr. Crusher says I will be able to return to duty soon."

"I am… relieved that the injuries I inflicted on you are not permanent." Data watched his friend's reaction, eyes wide.

"What's that?"

"This is the chip my father created for me so that I may experience emotion. I had it removed from Lore's body before he was dismantled."

"Does it work?"

"No. I am pleased to say it was damaged when I was forced to fire on Lore."

Geordi stared befuddled at Data. "Pleased? Data you've wanted emotions your whole life."

"Yes. But emotions are responsible for what I did to you, I would never risk letting that happen again. My friendship with you is too important to me." Data built up his resolve and raised a hand phaser to the chip.

Geordi placed his hands over the container protectively. "Now Data, I wouldn't be much of a friend if I let you give up on a lifelong dream. Maybe someday, when you're ready."

* * *

><p><em>28,000 words later–this project turned out to be far more massive than I ever expected. <em>

I will label this story as complete but since there are two sides I will publish one or two more chapters from Jamaal's point of view. The second story is almost finished, I will start uploading chapters from it very soon.


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